Mavis and Johnny vs Rest of the World
by bubblythebubblybubble
Summary: After the United States Military attacks Johnny and Mavis and declare them international terrorists for no reason at all, Mavis and Johnny are forced to abandon their old life and embrace a new one. Read with the fact that this fanfiction is a satire as well as a story in mind.
1. Encounter

**So the usual stuff, I don't own any of the characters or the original plotline from Hotel Transylvania 1, 2, or in the future, 3. I only own the characters that appear uniquely in this story (Gerschiv, General Clecius, The Boss, George).**

"Come on, Mavis, lets get going." Johnny said as he grabbed his backpack and strapped it on. Behind him, Mavis also jumped down from the table and grabbed her backpack and slung it on.

"How much longer until we reach the top of the mountain?" asked Mavis. Johnny checked the map again, "uuuuuuh, another mile and we'll make it I think." he suddenly grinned, "you getting tired, Mavey?".

Mavis snorted, "I'm a vampire, I don't get tired _that_ easily."

"Whatever you say." said Johnny, as he continued trekking up the trail. The two of them had been hiking for three hours in the Blue Ridge Mountains, a place where Johnny promised Mavis breathtaking views. As they climbed over yet another part of the trail, Johnny finally spotted it. The tip of the mountain they were climbing.

"There it is, come on!" Johnny ran towards the tip, but Mavis beat him to it. Using her super speed, she practically teleported to the top. When Johnny reached the top, he saw Mavis staring in wonder at the view. Johnny reached out and grabbed a camera and started snapping photos.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" he asked Mavis. Mavis nodded, "It's wonderful." she murmured, still staring at the view. It certainly was a sight. A massive forest stretched out under them, a blue lake glistening in the far north, and another mountain range in the east. Everything was illuminated by the moonlight, as Mavis couldn't come out during the day. Johnny had adopted a nocturnal sleep cycle just for her. Johnny leaned over and kissed Mavis on the cheek, making her blush.

"Want to get back down? Or dya want to settle down for a little?"

Mavis sighed, "Let's stay here for a little, then let's get heading back down." Johnny nodded, and sat down on one of the wooden benches that were built at the top.

As Mavis watched the sky, she suddenly noticed something, "Johnny, what's that?" Johnny looked up to where Mavis was pointing and saw a streak of light going across the sky.

Johnny frowned, "It's too low to be a satellite, and its too long to be a shooting star, so…"

"Here." Mavis offered Johnny her magic telescope. Dracula had created the telescope using magic centuries ago, but it was still far better than any modern telescope.

Johnny peered through it, and looked at the thing that was going through the sky. "It looks like a rocket, but it isn't heading up…"

Mavis looked at him confusingly, "Then what is it heading for?"

Johnny shrugged, then aimed the telescope at the trajectory he had estimated. "Oh shit." Johnny said, "Oh SHIT." "What?" asked Mavis.

Johnny stopped looking through the telescope and threw it back into Mavis's backpack, "We need to get moving now." he said.

"Why?" asked Mavis, who was now slightly panicking.

"That rocket, its heading for Veld." Veld was the city that was located right next to the mountains.

Mavis looked at Johnny with a skeptical look on her face. "Don't be silly Johnny, how is it heading for Veld?".

Johnny was now getting even more panicked. "Come on, we don't have time. If it's something dangerous then we could get killed."

Mavis sighed, "Fine, but if nothing happens within two minutes, then we come back to the top."

"Fine." mumbled Johnny, as he turned around and began running down the trail. Mavis followed quickly behind him, and they silently made their way down the trail. They stopped moving 45 seconds after leaving the top, and waited. At first, nothing happened.

Mavis rolled her eyes, "See Johnny, nothing bad." Just as she said that, there was an explosion. It was far off in the distance, but they could still hear it. Several more explosions followed. In the trail, they couldn't see anything, as Veld was only visible from the mountaintop. Mavis now looked terrified. She clutched Johnny's arm and they silently crouched in between two large boulders until finally, after what seemed like eternity, the explosions stopped.

Mavis got up and ran back to the top of the mountain, Johnny scrambling after her. When they reached the top, Mavis gasped. Veld was smoldering, flames raged in the village square, and even from this distance, she could smell all the smoke.

Johnny grabbed Mavis's backpack and yelled, "Turn into a bat, lets get to Veld, they need help!", then jumped off the top of the mountain. For the first few seconds, he free'-fell, then Mavis grabbed him and lifted him in the air, and flew towards the smoldering ruins of Veld.

When they reached the town, it was already too late. Not a single person in town survived the explosions. The hotel which they had stayed in three days ago was a pile of charcoal, and the burnt bodies of men, women, and children lay dead on the ground.

Mavis was used to blood and corpses, thanks to the zombies at Hotel Transylvania she often had to deal with, but Johnny was not. He jumped every time he passed by a corpse.

Mavis and Johnny made their way towards the center of town, but suddenly stopped. The sound of helicopter blades suddenly filled the air, and Johnny yelled, "Look!". Three military Apache helicopters were flying towards the wreckage of the town, behind them was what looked like a transport helicopter. Johnny and Mavis ran out into the open, Johnny waving his hands to get the attention of the helicopter pilots. He was under the impression that they were here to help, or to investigate, and that he could provide useful information. As he waved however, he noticed something wrong. The transport pilot did notice him, but it didn't land. The apaches began to circle Johnny, and Johnny began to feel uncomfortable. He felt Mavis suddenly grow tense beside him.

One of the apache helicopter pilots suddenly spoke to them through a speaker of some kind: "Mavis Dracula, you are to surrender yourself immediately or be shot on spot." Johnny looked dumbfounded, he thought humans had gotten over their monster-phobia.

Beside him, Mavis looked terrified.

Anger coursed through Johnny. So perhaps the government still didn't like monsters, perhaps humans weren't as good as he had thought they were. "You have ten seconds to comply before we kill you." said the man in the helicopter.

Mavis turned to Johnny, "What do I do?" she asked, her eyes frantic. Johnny, both angrily and calmly replied, "Do you think you can fight them as a bat?"

Mavis stared at him. "Johnny, these guys are the government." "It doesn't matter, they want to _kill_ you, Mavis." Johnny replied, "See if you can fight them, I'll go join in after I get some of my weapons." He wasn't joking. Before he left the hotel, he had taken several magical artifacts from Dracula's collection with his permission.

"You have five seconds left." yelled the pilot.

Mavis looked at Johnny, then kissed him, "I love you." she said, then turned into a green mist/fog substance that streaked straight for the first helicopter. Immediately, there was chaos. The helicopters fired, but the bullets went easily through the mist.

Nobody paid any attention to Johnny, who was fishing through his backpack. Mavis, still in mist form, seeped into the cockpit of one of the apaches. While inside the cockpit, she used her cape to strangle the pilot, then turned back into vampire form, taking control of the apache. Unfortunately for her, she didn't know how to fly apache helicopters, so at first the helicopter seemed as if it was about to crash, leaning way to the side, but Mavis managed to grab the throttle and keep the helicopter stable. That much she was able to figure out intuitively. Meanwhile, on the ground, Johnny finally found what he was looking for. In his hands was a small, two-foot iron staff. He flicked it, and it violently expanded outwards until it was six feet long and glowing. The staff's main purpose was to redirect electricity. Luckily for him, Dracula had taught Johnny how to use the staff.

Johnny raised the staff, and a lightning bolt came down and hit it. Right as the bolt hit the staff, the bolt was redirected back to one of the apaches. The apache's tail was cut clean off, and it began to spin out of control, finally crashing in the center of town.

By then, the transport had landed, and what looked like forty navy SEALS ran out, firing their guns at Johnny, who was forced behind a wall.

Above the SEALS, Mavis had purposely ran the apache into a building, then at the last second transformed back into purple mist and flew at the last apache. Within a few minutes the last apache was a smoking pile of rubble as well. But the forty Navy SEALS still remained, firing at Johnny, who was still pinned behind a wall. Johnny redirected two more lightning bolts back to the SEALS. One of the bolts missed and the other took out six SEALs.

Mavis materialized back into a vampire form and used her super speed, quickly taking out a dozen SEALs. With the SEAL's attention temporarily on the living bullet who was Mavis, Johnny came out from behind the wall and summoned a lightning bolt that knocked out another four enemy troops.

Mavis finished off the rest easily.

Mavis and Johnny were both exhausted. For Mavis, it was weird because she was under the impression that the rest of the world was cool with monsters. For Johnny, it was weird because he had never killed anyone.

The two of them hugged briefly, then looked around them. Dead SEALs everywhere. The wreckage of helicopters surrounding them. Johnny narrowed his eyes then. "Wait a second…" he murmured. The transport helicopter was still there. Mavis grabbed his arm. "Let me check it out, I can turn to mist." she said.

"Okay."

Mavis turned to mist and flew into the transport helicopter. After a second, she turned back into vampire form.

"It's fine." she called, "nobody's here."

Johnny rushed into the helicopter with Mavis's bag as well as his own and set them down in the back. "Do you know how to fly this thing?" he asked Mavis. Mavis was already at the controls, looking at the dials. "Not really," she said, "But I think this should work…" before Johnny could stop her, she flipped a small pink. Instantly the engines wurred to life.

"How did you know how to do that?" asked Johnny. "It says 'engine' right next to the switch dummy." replied Mavis teasingly.

That bit of teasing humor was enough to relax the tension alot. Johnny sat down as Mavis used the throttle to slowly raise the helicopter. It was slow at first, but they eventually got twenty, thirty, forty feet above the air. After playing around with some of the throttle controls, Mavis began to fly north.

As they flew, the reality of what was happening sunk in. "But why?" asked Mavis. "Why would they come after us?"

"They're probably scared of what you guys can do." said Johnny uncomfortably. "Point being, we should probably head back to the Hotel if we want to survive out here."

Mavis shook her head, "I don't think the hotel would be a good idea." "Why not?" asked Johnny, "Your dad's there, I mean, he's powerful right?"

"He is, but I have a feeling that if they knew that we were hiking in the middle of nowhere, then they would also know where hotel Transylvania is." replied Mavis. "And, if they threw everything they could at my dad, then…" Mavis stopped talking.

"Hey," Johnny gave Mavis a hug and a kiss, "Don't worry about your dad, he'll be fine. Worry about ourselves for now."

Mavis looked ahead, "Yeah. Speaking of which, where _are_ we gonna go, now that we're outlaws?" Johnny pondered this for a second, "I say we go to a large city. The government won't firebomb a large city as easily as they did to Veld."

Mavis nodded, "Well, the nearest large settlement is Las Vegas."

Johnny grinned, despite the difficult situation, "Lets get going to the land of casinos then."

* * *

 **pls no bad reviews i is good at wr8ting pls giv me gud review kthanks bai if u give b d r3v73w my pet parrot will hax ur komp**


	2. Hide

As Mavis and Johnny flew towards Las Vegas, Johnny decided that since they were already outlaws, he might as well just go all the way. The helicopter had a weapons storage, where Johnny found several machine guns with plenty of ammunition, along with grenades, rifles, and- "oh HELL yeah!" said Johnny, lifting a massive gatling gun the size of himself out of the storage. The gatling gun had a outer skeleton which could be strapped onto the front of Johnny so he could carry the gun around.

At the pilot's seat of the helicopter, Mavis was watching the fuel indicator with increasing worriedness. According to the fuel indicator, if they went at maximum economic speed, they would still fall short of Las Vegas by twenty miles.

"Johnny?" Mavis called, "get over here." "Coming Mav!" Mavis heard a loud clanging sound in the other room, and Johnny appeared at the doorway, "What is it?" he asked, walking forward.

"We're going to be landing 20 miles outside Las Vegas," Mavis said.

"You sure that's the best we can do?" asked Johnny.

Mavis nodded, "Certain.".

Johnny frowned. "That means we'll have to go 20 miles on foot."

"Well, not necessarily, we can just camp out in the woods during the day and hike to Las Vegas during the night." said Mavis, "I mean, we are nocturnal right?"

Johnny nodded, "True, but what if some pesky camp regulator checks on us?"

"I can erase his memory, don't worry." said Mavis.

It was then when Johnny realized how tired Mavis looked. He wasn't as tired, thanks to the fact that he made his nocturnal transition relatively recently, but Mavis looked terrible. Her eyes were tinged red, and her already pale skin had grown a shade paler.

"Mavis, you gotta get some rest." said Johnny gently, "Just show me how to use the controls."

Mavis sighed with relief, because secretly she had wanted to get some rest, "Alright, you just use these throttles to control which direction the helicopter goes, this one changes tilt."

Johnny settled at the controls and tried out some of the throttles. After he got a hang for them, he nodded and said, "Thanks, get some rest now."

Mavis walked into the back of the helicopter and laid down. As soon as her head hit the steel ground, she fell asleep.

An hour later, the fuel indicator was at critical. The helicopter began to lose altitude. Johnny kept the helicopter stable, but knew that the crash was inevitable. He grabbed the altitude throttle and pulled down, causing the helicopter to jerk violently downwards. Johnny spotted a location for a landing, a small clearing, which he went for immediately.

As Johnny began to lower the helicopter in the clearing, the fuel finally cut. The helicopter dropped from five feet over the ground, causing the glass in the cockpit to shatter, and shaking the entire helicopter. Johnny fell out of his seat, but quickly scrambled up.

"Mavis, we've landed!" said Johnny, proud with his crude but successful landing. When no response came, Johnny frowned. He went to the back and saw Mavis curled up in a ball, still sleeping despite all the noise he had created. Smiling, Johnny opened the back doors, and carried Mavis out.

In the clearing, Johnny grabbed the camouflage tent he had packed in his backpack and set it up. Then he carried Mavis into the tent and made sure she was nice and snug in the sleeping bag. Right after that, Johnny scouted around, making sure it was a completely unpopulated area.

After satisfying himself, Johnny grabbed some of the grenades from the storage and detonated them in the helicopter, destroying all the electronic devices to ensure they weren't being tracked.

Johnny _did_ save some stuff, such as the massive gatling gun he had found and the grenades. He threw those into the tent, in the back. Luckily for both of them, Johnny had chosen a spot far away from the wreckage of the helicopter.

As Johnny snuggled in with Mavis, he reached down and grabbed his phone. Opening it, he saw a few things. He didn't have data where he was unfortunately, but at some point from the incident at Veld to him landing he must've gotten some data, because there was a news notification on the lock screen of his phone. Just reading it made him angry.

 _MSNBC:_

 _Teenage terrorists Mavis Dracula and Johnny Loughran set fire to the village of Veld in southern California, killing sixty police officers who tried to stop them in the process. Casualties of the fire number up the entire population of Veld._

"The government must really want us dead" was the only thing Johnny could think of, as he angrily threw his phone at his backpack. He then went back into the sleeping bag and fell asleep almost instantly.

Mavis woke up eight hours after Johnny fell asleep. At first, she was confused on where she was, but as she peeked outside and saw all the sun, she quickly retreated back into the tent. Johnny must've landed the helicopter successfully then. As Mavis applied a thick layer of sunscreen over any of her skin that was not covered by clothing, she noticed a massive machine gun at the back of the tent. _Probably just something he took from the helicopter_ , thought Mavis.

Mavis went outside, her sunscreen protecting her from the glaring rays of the sun. According to Johnny's watch, it was 3:30 in the afternoon, meaning that night would soon come.

As Mavis stood outside, she heard a cry from in the tent. "Mavis? You there?" it was Johnny, and he was panicking. "I'm here." replied Mavis, going back into the tent. "Oh, thank goodness," sighed Johnny, "I thought the government took you for good that time." Mavis laughed, the first time she laughed since the incident at Veld.

As Mavis and Johnny snuggled together in the tent, Johnny finally said, "Mavis, the government, uh, blame us for blowing up Veld."

Mavis growled, her eyes temporarily turning red with anger, "Once we get our hands on whoever planned all this, I'm gonna feed him to the gremlin lady."

Johnny grinned, but quickly became serious again. "I just wish we could live, you know, normal lives."

Mavis nodded, "I wish that were true. But you know, nobody seems to plan on letting that happen."

Johnny stayed silent this time, watching the sun cast light patterns inside the tent.

Finally, Mavis asked, "Johnny, do you truly think dad is alright?"

Johnny hesitated. "I don't know," murmured Johnny, "The United States has some crazy stuff that would be, uh, pretty bad, but your dad is pretty cool. I'm sure he'll be fine."

This answer didn't satisfy Mavis. Johnny could see the pain in her. Johnny wrapped his arms around Mavis, "It's fine, as long as we're together we'll be fine, Mavey."

Mavis this time returned the hug with a kiss, "I know it will be," she whispered, "It's just...all these worrisome matters with my dad and the government and now our own survival."

Johnny said, "You know, when we're in Las Vegas we can visit the Bellagio Fountains."

Mavis looked up at him, "I thought we were running from the government, not sightseeing."

Johnny smiled, "Just because we're on the run doesn't mean we can't take a little break here and there."

Mavis smiled as well this time, "I love you." she murmured. Johnny sat back, "I love you too." he said.

Three hours later the two of them began their long trek towards Las Vegas. Mavis helped by flying Johnny and their backpacks half the distance, but couldn't fly any farther.

At 4:00 am in the morning, the two of them finally reached Las Vegas. Luckily for both of them, Johnny had brought two hundred dollars in cash, and they crashed at the cheapest hotel they could find, which was hard since Las Vegas was literally the city of fancy hotels.

When the two of them entered into the hotel room, the first thing Mavis did was close the curtains and make sure the door was securely shut. Johnny took out his machine gun and placed it facing the door, just in case someone decided to barge in.

After making sure everything was secure, Johnny asked, "So, after this what do we do?"

Mavis thought for a moment, "I might be able to create a telepathic link with my dad and see how he's doing."

"Vampires can do that?" asked Johnny in awe

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Yes, we have telepathy, but only with other vampires unfortunately."

"Well, if you can then by all means try tomorrow morning." said Johnny

Mavis shook her head, "I can try right now." as she said that, she closed her eyes and concentrated, and an eerie green glow lit her eyes. But Johnny intervened.

"Woah woah, you just flew and hiked twenty miles, take it easy on yourself." said Johnny, "I'll go to the hotel diner, grab some food, and come back, okay?"

Mavis nodded weakly, "Thank you, Johnny." she murmured. She _was_ very hungry, now that she thought of it.

"Just rest for now, I'll be back soon." said Johnny, then exited the hotel room, heading for the diner. When he entered the diner, he grabbed a plate for himself (bacon, ham, oatmeal, and waffles), and a plate for Mavis (beet juice, mashed potatoes, and bagels with cream cheese). Johnny really hoped that vampires liked beet juice.

It was then when Johnny saw the TV screen hanging at the corner of the room. Everyone in the room was watching it, and Johnny saw why.

 _Now we have live footage of the destruction these two teenage terrorists brought to this small town._

The screen cut to the footage of the town of Veld. The buildings, burned to charcoal, and the ground a solid black color thanks to all the ash.

 _Authorities urge anyone who have any information on these individuals to please step forward_.

The screen cut to two pictures. One of Mavis and one of Johnny. Johnny quickly walked out of the diner, staring at the ground.

When Johnny got back to the room, he saw Mavis pointing the machine gun at him. Immediately he froze, "Woah."

Mavis put down the gun, "Sorry, just practicing proper security measures."

Johnny laughed as he put down the two trays, "Yeah, right. I have a question, Mavis."

"Yeah?"

"Do vampires like beet juice?" asked Johnny.

"What's that?" asked Mavis.

Johnny sighed, and brought Mavis's tray over, "Here, I got you beet juice cuz it looked similar to the blood supplementations that you take, and I got bagels with cream cheese since there's no scream cheese."

Mavis looked at her tray for a moment, and Johnny thought for a second that he may have made some sort of mistake, when Mavis wolfed down the entire bagel and swallowed all the mashed potatoes.

Mavis looked at the glass of beet juice, "Smells funny." she said, then took a drink.

Mavis drank the entire glass in one gulp, afterwards, she commented, "It tastes like water."

Johnny shrugged, "That's better than it tasting bad at least."

"True." Mavis stared at her plate, as if wanting more.

"Do you want more? I can get some more food if you want." said Johnny.

"No, it's fine. I'll just go to bed now. Tomorrow, I'll try to get that telepathic link up." said Mavis.


	3. Wounded

A few hundred miles away from Las Vegas, in the Pentagon, General Clecius was pacing up and down the hallway.

"We tracked their helicopter to Ridstone Valley, but then we lost track of them?" he asked his chief advisor.

"Yes sir, when our men got there they reported that the helicopter was destroyed. No evidence of where the two of them went." replied Gordon, the chief advisor.

General Clecius stopped next to a map of the area. "Send troops and investigators into every city and town near the helicopter." he said, "and put Las Vegas into martial law." he added.

Gordon nodded, "As you wish sir. Also, we have some additional evidence.."

General Clecius stopped looked over, "And what is that?"

"We've tracked one of the suspect's-Johnny's phone. He's done a good job of keeping his radioactive signature hidden from us, but we've made a few breakthroughs. I believe he is currently in the western part of Las Vegas."

The general nodded, "Send troops there. I want every building in the western sector searched."

Gordon nodded, "Yes sir."

 _In Las Vegas, 3 hours later_

Mavis woke up first, surprisingly. She yawned and got out of bed. Next to him, Johnny was still snoring into his pillow.

Mavis grabbed the TV remote and turned on the TV, at minimum volume to not disturb Johnny, and went to the news channel.

 _The government has declared Las Vegas to be under Martial Law, in fear that the two teenage terrorists Mavis and Johnny, are in hiding there. General Clecius of the American ground Forces assures that they will be able to catch the two terrorists by the end of the week._

That's all Mavis had to hear. She shut off the TV and remembered that she had promised to Johnny that she would try to start a telepathic link with Dracula.

Mavis concentrated. She had only tried the telepathic trick once, and it was pretty difficult then. Her vision began to become tinted with green, and suddenly, she heard voices.

 _Frank! Run, get to the hidden exit!_

It was Dracula's voice, and he was panicking. Mavis concentrated harder. _Dad, it's me_. She felt Dracula's voice suddenly ease,

 _Mavis! Thank goodness you're okay, I've been worried._

 _Thanks dad, what's happening?_

 _The human government out there seems to have had a change of mind. They've burnt down the hotel, I'm evacuating with Frank and Blobby and Griffin._

 _How about everyone else?_

 _They've either been captured or escaped their own ways. How's Johnny?_

That question took Mavis by surprise.

 _Johnny's fine, he's sleeping right now. Dad, we got ambushed by the government as well, we're hiding in Las Vegas right now._

 _Las Vegas? And where is that? I don't know I haven't left the hotel in seven centuries anyways._

Suddenly, a Mavis heard an explosion in the background

 _What was that?_

 _It was those stupid humans, trying to kill us. Don't worry about me Mavey, I'll reach you soon._

The connection was cut off.

Johnny woke up right behind Mavis. "Hey Mavey," he said groggily, "What've you been up to?"

Mavis sighed, and flopped back onto the bed, "I just contacted Dracula, apparently they're under attack right now. He's gonna escape, but I'm not sure about the other people."

Johnny patted her back softly, "Come on, we need to worry about ourselves right now."

"Also, Johnny, Las Vegas is in Martial Law right now. Is that bad? Because it sounds really bad."

Asked Mavis

Johnny's eyes widened, "Martial law? That sucks! That means that the military is gonna go marching in and take control of everything."

Mavis immediately jumped to action, "Then we better get packing. I don't think the military is planning on letting us go easily."

Johnny grabbed his backpack, "Yeah, lets get going before they find us in-"

" _This is the FBI, we are conducting a search of this building. Please remain calm and do not leave your rooms_."

Johnny looked up. "That doesn't sound good."

Mavis transformed into a bat. "Let me check." she said. She opened the door and flew out. A few seconds later, she came back in.

"They've got the entire building surrounded." said Mavis. "I don't think they're certain that we're here, but they seem to believe that there's a chance that we're hiding here."

Johnny grumbled, "They're correct then." he muttered.

"So what now?" asked Mavis.

"Lets take them by surprise. We're going to have to fight our way out of this one, so we might as well just take the offensive." said Johnny, strapping his gatling gun to his chest.

Mavis nodded nervously, "Alright."

 _Two minutes later_

The police and SWAT team squads were more relaxed. There were over a hundred other buildings in the western sector that the two terrorists could've been hiding in, what was the chance that they were hiding in the hotel they were assigned to?

Apparently the chance was quite high, because right then, a skinny dude poked his head out from behind a pillar and threw four grenades at the blockade.

 _BOOM_

The ground shook, police cars ablaze. There were yells, gunshots rang across the parking lot. The dude who threw the grenades disappeared behind the pillar again.

This time, a purplish mist flew out from behind the pillar, behind it, there was an empty cape. With astonishing speed, the mist strangled a few police officers, right as the skinny dude came back out from behind the pillar, this time armed with a massive gatling gun that was strapped to his chest.

Mavis got out of the way just in time. Johnny's gatling gun rained two-inch bullets that easily pierced the armor of the police cars and eliminated many police officers.

Mavis ran to a relatively untouched police car and got in. Johnny slid into the shotgun seat, throwing the bulky gatling gun to the back of the car. He then grabbed the machine gun he took and pointed it out the car, looking for any threats.

Several SWAT team members and police officers were left, all of them firing at the car. Johnny was forced to hide behind the thick police doors, but Mavis simply turned into mist and used her cape to steer the car and hit the gas pedal.

Their car roared down the parking lot and smashed through a barricade, causing wood and metal to go flying everywhere. Behind them, four black SWAT SUVs took chase, speeding behind them.

"They're getting closer!" yelled Johnny as he looked into the rear view mirror.

"I know, I know, give me a sec." said Mavis, still in mist form. She steered the car through the streets of Las Vegas, heading for the center of the city. Mavis had only driven a car twice before, and she was still shaky with the controls.

Right as the police cars were right on top of them, however, Mavis jerked the steering wheel hard to the left, causing the police car to rumble down an alley.

"Do you know where we're going?" asked Johnny, poking his head out the window. Behind him, the other police cars were still trying to reorganize themselves. They didn't expect Mavis to go into the alleyway.

"I saw this area on your phone once, with google maps." said Mavis, turning back to vampire form, "It leads to the Mob Museum."

As Mavis turned another corner, they saw the Mob Museum. Quickly, Mavis navigated the car into the underground parking lot, then cut the engines.

"C'mon, those police cars are gonna get here soon." said Johnny, grabbing his backpack. Mavis also grabbed her backpack and the two of them silently walked around the edge of the parking lot, until they found a room. It was a dusty old maintenance room, filled with brooms and soap bottles.

"Wait….I see them." whispered Johnny, peering through the crack of the door.

Sure enough, a dozen police cars filed in, and SWAT team units came out, armed with riot shields and shotguns.

Mavis was rummaging around in the back of the room. She pulled a row of brooms to the side to reveal a very old-looking staircase leading up.

Johnny ran back to her and looked at her, "How did you-"

"Vampires have extra-sensory perception, remember?" said Mavis.

"Right." said Johnny, "Come on, let's-"

"THERE!"

Behind them, the door burst open, and two SWAT members charged through, shotguns blazing. Johnny was able to jump out of the way fast enough, but Mavis was not. She collapsed with a cry of pain.

Johnny pointed his machine gun at the SWAT units and blasted them, killing both. He ran to Mavis, who was trying to get up. There was a bullet wound on her shoulder, and she was bleeding profusely.

"Shit." murmured Johnny. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulder. While he was doing this, the wounded Mavis had enough strength to use her telekinesis to shut the door and lock it.

Johnny tied the jacket at the ends and helped Mavis up, "Come on, we have to move."

Mavis's breathing was heavy, and her vision was blurry, but she managed to get up the stairs. Johnny helped each step of the way, and when they got to the top, Johnny said, "Wow."

They were in the center of the Mob Museum. Behind them, there was a loud explosion and the sound of a metal door hitting the ground. Johnny helped Mavis over to the practically empty gift shop. After convincing the cashier that Mavis was the victim of a gang crossfire, the cashier handed him a bunch of emergency medication.

Johnny grabbed some TXA, (Tranexamic Acid), and dabbed it on the wound. He then wrapped the jacket around Mavis again. Mavis's breathing did seem better.

"Come on, Mavey, come on." murmured Johnny as he practically carried Mavis to the entrance. Behind him, the police officers were still searching the museum. As he left the museum, he saw a dozen police officers set up a barricade in front of it, and more SWAT members show up.

Johnny kept his head low, hiding the bloody shoulder from view. As he passed by the SWAT barricade, he got some funny glances, but nothing more.

Johnny and Mavis walked for another two miles before stopping. By then, they were in Sunset Park, a small playground in Las Vegas.

Johnny set Mavis down on the grass lightly. The blood loss had temporarily stopped, thanks to the TXA, but his jacket was soaked in blood now.

Mavis groaned, "It hurts, Johnny."

"I know," murmured Johnny, "But you have to keep going, the wound wasn't fatal."

He was speaking the truth, the bullet wound seemed to have only broke her left shoulder.

Johnny then realized that they had no backpacks. He had dropped his machine gun and his backpack to help Mavis. The only thing they had right now was 150$.

Johnny looked around, and spotted an alleyway in the corner of the street.

"Come on Mavey, up you get." said Johnny, helping Mavis up. Mavis looked as if she was about to cry from the pain, but still complied.

"We're gonna go to that alleyway for the day, tomorrow, we'll find a way out of this city." said Johnny.

Mavis nodded, but her vision was blurry, "Okay.." she murmured.

They eventually reached the alleyway, and bought an overpriced sleeping bag from a homeless person.

That day, Mavis slept quietly in the sleeping bag, with Johnny constantly checking her pulse and applying TXA. He temporarily left her at about 8:00 am to buy tweezers and band aids, along with two burgers from McDonalds.

Johnny knew that vampires slept through pain from what Dracula told him, so he knelt down and carefully inserted the tweezer into the bullet wound. It was nasty, but Johnny gritted his teeth and continued, until he finally felt a metal object in the wound. Closing his eyes with disgust, he pulled out the bullet and set it aside.

Johnny looked at the sleeping Mavis, then kissed her softly, "It'll be alright." he whispered to her. He then applied the largest band aid he had and covered her wound with the sleeping bag.


	4. National

Mavis woke up to a dark sky and a full moon. She was wrapped up in a sleeping bag, and Johnny had replaced the jacket splint with a huge band aid. Next to her, Johnny was crouched low working on something.

"Johnny?"

Johnny turned around and smiled, "Finally you woke up, I was starting to worry."

Mavis shrugged, but that caused her to grimace in pain. "Ow.. what've you been doing?"

Johnny handed her a map of Las Vegas, "I've been trying to figure out the best route out of the city. Las Vegas is still under martial law, so the main entrances and exits won't work. I think our best bet is going through Bluestone Park."

Mavis nodded, "Alright then, when do we get moving?"

"As soon as you can move, Mavey." replied Johnny. He made Mavis lay back down again, "Here," Johnny applied some more TXA, "This stuff wears out quickly, but it eases the pain."

Mavis sighed, "Yeah it really does," she looked around at the alley, "Wait, where are our backpacks?"

Johnny shifted uncomfortably, "Uh, when we ran from the museum, we kinda left them at the maintenance room."

Mavis didn't say anything for a moment, then suddenly, she remembered something. "General Clecius!" she cried, shooting straight up then grimacing again because of her shoulder.

Johnny made her sit down again, "Don't do that Mav, and who's General Clecius?"

"He's the person who ordered Las Vegas to be put under martial law. If we get to him, we can find out who wants us dead in the government. I watched it on the TV yesterday." said Mavis, getting excited.

Johnny frowned, "If he is really the person who put us under martial law, then he's probably part of the military. And if he's part of the military, that means that he probably works at the pentagon."

Mavis looked confused, "What's the pentagon?"

Johnny had almost forgotten how little Mavis knew of the outside world, "It's the place where military leaders in the US collaborate."

Mavis shifted, "Right, and so where is it, like, relative to large cities?"

"It's in Washington D.C." said Johnny, looking at the map again.

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Great, another big city to get stuck in."

Johnny folded up the map, "Alright, here's what's gonna happen. Today, we're gonna sneak out of Las Vegas through the park exit, we're going to get into the Las Vegas Airport from the back exit, and then you can mind control the front desk people to give us free tickets to Washington DC."

Mavis nodded. Her bullet wound had already begun to heal, the skin and flesh growing back. So she should be able to have enough strength for a mind control. "Let's get going then." she said, pushing herself up.

Johnny stood up, "Woah, are you sure you can walk? You just took a bullet to the shoulder you know?"

Mavis looked over at him, "Vampires have regenerative flesh, It might be painful right now, but it'll wear off eventually."

Johnny nodded, "Of course they do, let's get cracking then"

Johnny had to help Mavis the first few steps, but eventually, after a few minutes of walking, Mavis could walk on her own. She still had to take some TXA every few hours, but it was fine apart from that.

The two of them snuck to Bluestone Park at 2:00 am in the morning. Since it was so late at night, nobody was in the park. Mavis and Johnny crossed the park and went through the back exit.

Johnny glanced at the map again, "Alright...So….we're supposed to go this way." Johnny began walking around the city. All the two of them could see were endless buildings, and the backside of commercial billboards.

Mavis's breathing became steadier by the hour. By 4:00 am, she was almost walking normally again, except her wounded shoulder was tilted a little downwards. By 6:00 am they had finally reached the Las Vegas international airport.

When Johnny glanced into the airport he quickly turned to Mavis, "Lots of guards," he whispered, "try to act normal."

Mavis nodded, trying to even her shoulders out, then winced with pain. Following Johnny, she entered the airport and saw why Johnny looked so worried.

There were military personnel literally everywhere. Guarding the gates, the terminals, and even the shopping centers. Since it was 6:00 am not too many people were in the airport, so Johnny and Mavis kept their heads very low. They quickly walked across the room and went to the ticket station. "We would like two tickets for a direct flight to Washington D.C." said Johnny.

The man at the front desk looked up at them, then seemed to recognize them. His eyes widened with fear, but before he could do anything else, Mavis activated her mind control, "You will give us the plane tickets to washington DC for free, you will forget you ever saw us, and you will continue working like normal."

The man at the ticket desk swayed a little, his eyes glowing slightly red. "I...will...give tickets...Washington DC….forget….continue working…" he got two tickets, handed them to Mavis, and continued working on the computers.

Mavis turned away, smiling, "See, I can handle it." she said teasingly to Johnny.

Johnny rolled his eyes, "Come on, lets get through security check."

The security check passed quickly, with Mavis having to mind wipe two more TSA agents who recognized them. After getting through security, Mavis actually looked at the plane tickets.

"Alright...It says we have a direct flight to Washington at 7:30 am." she said.

Johnny looked around nervously. It was currently 6:45 am, and that meant that there was 45 minutes to get caught. "Alright Mav, let's just try not to attract too much attention." he said nervously.

Mavis sighed, "I really wish we were good at that."

Johnny sat down next to Mavis at the gate, alert and watching, while Mavis telekinetically stole someone's phone and was searching up google maps for Washington DC.

"Oooooh," said Mavis, "Look, the airport in Washington is only fifteen minutes away from the Pentagon."

Johnny nodded, "That makes it easy for us then, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "While we're there we should also visit the White House, get some pictures."

Johnny looked over at her, "Yeah, we should do that."

Soon enough 7:30 arrived, and Mavis and Johnny, along with forty other passengers filed onto the plane. It was a relatively small plane, but that didn't matter. Johnny and Mavis knew that on the plane, they were safe.

The plane ride took 5 hours, and Mavis and Johnny spent most of it either sleeping, planning, or cuddling.

Three hours into the ride, Mavis asked, "Johnny, how are we gonna get our hands on General Clecius?"

Johnny shrugged, "We first need to find out when he goes to the pentagon and how long he stays. That should be easy," then, Johnny lowered his voice, "We know when to strike."

Mavis frowned, "Why don't we take him outside the pentagon?"

Johnny pondered it, "Well, if it were outside we would have more witnesses, so it would be harder to do."

"But if we do it in the Pentagon wouldn't it be even worse? Those are military people we're talking about." said Mavis.

Johnny snorted, "Mavis, I guarantee you that the people working in the Pentagon are far beyond their fighting days. They only work there because of their experience."

Mavis nodded, "I guess that makes sense."

The two of them fell silent as a plane assistant walked over, "Anything to drink?" she asked.

Johnny asked for water, and Mavis, to Johnny's astonishment, asked for beet juice.

"Anyways, there's no martial law in Washington DC, so that's good." said Johnny, sipping his water.

"Yeah, but won't we attract attention when they realize that a military general just went missing?" asked Mavis.

"Eh, they could attribute it to alot of things." said Johnny, "And anyways, I doubt anyone would suspect a kidnapping if the general didn't show up. They would probably just think that he took a day off or something."

Mavis shrugged, and was taken aback by how little it hurt.

Johnny yawned, "I'm gonna sleep a little." he said, wrapping an airplane blanket around himself.

Mavis nodded, "Yeah, same." With that, she rested her head on Johnny lap and closed her eyes.

When Mavis woke up, a person on the intercom was talking.

 _...will be arriving shortly at Washington DC, the local time is 2:31 pm and the temperature is 52 degrees._

Next to her, Johnny sat up groggily, "We there?" he asked.

"Yeah, we're landing in a few minutes." said Mavis. She lifted the bandage on her shoulder a tiny bit and checked on the wound. By now, it had been reduced to a nasty purple scar, but was much better than before.

Johnny saw her checking and looked over, "You fine?" he asked.

"Yeah I'm fine." said Mavis hurriedly, "Come on, lets get ready for landing."

The two of them buckled in their seatbelts and waited. A few minutes later, the plane rumbled to a halt at the Washington Airport. Mavis and Johnny got out a little before everyone else in their row, being the only ones with literally zero baggage.

Once they got into the crowded airport, the two of them had no problem locating the taxi drive-in. Mavis quickly mind controlled the taxi driver to bring them to the cheapest hotel they could find, and the two of them quickly paid for a room.

As soon as they got into the room and shut the door, Johnny checked his pockets and pulled out all the cash he had. "Damn, we're down to forty bucks Mav." said Johnny.

Mavis looked a little down for a second, then she perked up, "I can mind control people and ask them for their money…" she said. In all honesty she didn't know if that would work. Mind control was a very taxing ability.

"Well, if you can then go ahead." said Johnny. Mavis smiled, "I'll try, but if I fail…"

"Then we can tell the person that you're trying to do a vampire impression." said Johnny conclusively.

Mavis laughed, "Sure, whatever you say."

The two of them walked outside and went to the nearest ATM. There, Mavis made her move. She walked up, "Hey!" The person who was at the ATM looked over, and as soon as he did, Mavis said, her eyes glowing red, "You will withdraw all your money in the form of cash and give it to me, then you will forget of this ever happening."

The person's eyes glowed red, then he turned around, "Money...give...forget…"

Soon enough Johnny and Mavis had $16,000 worth in cash.

After leaving the person, Mavis looked back at him, "Don't you feel kind of bad, just taking his money?" she asked.

Johnny sighed, "Listen, they'll live, people have multiple bank accounts, but we'll die if we don't take his money. We need it more than he does."

Mavis grumbled, "Guess you're right."

For the rest of the day, Johnny and Mavis visited stores. Johnny bought Mavis a nice Sombrero to protect her from the sun, along with sunscreen and sunglasses. Mavis bought portable security cameras and a bunch of portable food, such as crackers and chips.

At 8:00 pm, Johnny and Mavis returned to the hotel. Mavis busied herself with hiding the cameras in the walkways and bushes around the hotel, and Johnny busied himself with cooking ramen noodles. Once the noodles were done, Johnny called, "Mavis, dinner's ready!"

Mavis flew back into the room as a bat and turned back into vampire form. "I was wondering what that amazing smell was." she grinned as she sat down and grabbed the bowl of ramen that was sitting at her side of the table.

"Wow, this stuff is really good." said Mavis, as she finished the entire bowl in three minutes. Johnny nodded, "Yeah, it tastes good but it's actually bad for your health, I only made it 'cause we need something warm to eat after all this fighting and running."

Mavis nodded, and drained the rest of the bowl.

After dinner, the two of them sat in bed. "So...tomorrow we're gonna take a little visit to the pentagon, and find General Clecius, right?" asked Johnny. Mavis nodded, "Yeah." She wasn't tired, since she spent a long time sleeping on the flight, but Johnny eventually convinced her to go to bed.

* * *

 **mai paret iz gud at wr8ting pls nu b d revoo**


	5. Interrogation

"WHAT?" roared General Clecius, "THEY ESCAPED?"

"Yes sir," said Gordon quite calmly, "They killed several of our police officers and injured three times as much, our investigators have not found any traces of the two of them in Las Vegas; most of them have made the conclusion that they left the city."

General Clecius fumed, "How about the neighbouring villages and towns? Anything?"

"Nothing sir." replied Gordon.

General Clecius sat down at his chair, "have we checked the airports yet?"

"Yes we have, and we found 7 falsified identities on board those planes." replied Gordon.

The general looked surprised, "What do you mean 'falsified'?"

"It means that the passport or the identity was faked. Las Vegas gets an average of 11 falsified identities every day."

The general thought for a moment, "Track each of those planes, get more men on the ground at the cities they land in. And what cities do those planes head for anyways?"

"The planes that the falsified identities took headed to Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Miami, and Washington DC."

The general raised an eyebrow, "Washington DC as well?"

"Yes sir." said Gordon.

The general pondered on his thoughts for a moment, "We'll let them make the first move this time," he said, "Then we'll get a solid track on them."

* * *

 _One Hour Later_

Johnny woke up in the hotel room. It was 6:00 am in the morning, and he yawned, getting up. Before doing anything, he leaned over to Mavis and checked on her wound carefully. It was almost entirely healed. The only thing left was a red scar.

Johnny smiled. At least Mavis was getting better. Johnny walked to the TV and turned it on, switching channels until he reached the one he was looking for.

 _Terrorists Mavis Dracula and Johnny Loughran killed 32 police officers yesterday when authorities found them in a hotel. The city of Las Vegas is still under martial law, but most investigators are under the impression that the terrorists have fled elsewhere._

Jonathan sighed. Hopefully today he could get some success in figuring out why everyone wanted to kill him and his wife. He walked over to the pile of bags in the corner, grabbed a pack of saltine crackers, and began making cracker/cheese sandwiches out of them.

While Jonathan was making cracker sandwiches, Mavis was having a dream.

 _Mavis!_

 _What? Who is this?_

 _It's me, Dracula_

 _Oh okay, why're you calling me right now? I think I'm sleeping._

 _That's fine and all, but you have to listen to me_

 _Okay, what is it?_

 _It's the government, I tracked some of their vehicles that had captured monsters on it to some sort of laboratory in Colorado or something._

 _A laboratory?_

 _Yes, I think they're attacking us because they want to use us for their experiments, whatever that may be._

 _That's nasty, but how did you do it?_

 _I turned into a bat. Speaking of which, where are you right now? I saw the news about Las Vegas._

 _I'm in Washington DC right now dad, me and Johnny are making plans to figure out what's going on_

 _Ah okay, I've got to go now, stay safe Mavey!_

With that, the connection was cut, and Mavis woke up. At the table in the corner of the room, Johnny saw her and waved, "Come on, Mav, I made some cracker sandwiches for you."

Mavis got out of bed and dragged herself to the table. In all honesty she had no appetite, but she forced herself to swallow a few cracker sandwiches before she told Johnny about her telepathic conversation with Dracula.

Johnny rubbed the back of his head, "Well, that complicates things for us." he said lamely, "but it also shows that we can turn the public against the government."

Mavis looked at him, "How?"

"All we need to do is get proof that the government is doing this, then the public will go haywire." said Johnny, "And today, I'm sure that we'll be able to get that information from our buddy General Clecius."

Mavis perked up, "Speaking of him, when're we gonna go to the pentagon?"

"Right after breakfast." said Johnny, stuffing his face full of crackers.

Mavis and Johnny left the hotel room at 7:00 am and got onto a taxi, which brought them to the pentagon. When they reached the massive building, the first thing Mavis did, surprisingly, was take a picture.

"Might as well take a picture of it while it's still in good shape." said Mavis, grinning.

Johnny watched the Pentagon entrance. It was flanked by two guys with guns. Johnny turned to Mavis, "Think you can turn into a bat and take a look?" Mavis nodded, and after making sure nobody was looking, turned into a bat, and flew towards the pentagon.

A few minutes later, Mavis reappeared next to Johnny, "I found the room which he works in, but its empty right now."

"Is there any way in apart from the main entrance?" asked Johnny.

"You keep forgetting that I can mind wipe people." said Mavis, smiling

"Right." said Johnny.

"We should go right now, there aren't many people around here, it's only 7:00." said Mavis.

"Okay, okay, let's go." said Johnny, but he sounded tense.

When Mavis and Johnny went to the entrance, the two armed guards stopped them, as expected, "Sorry ma'am, but you can't go any-"

"You will let us through, and you will forget seeing us." said Mavis, glaring at both the guards. The guard which spoke first immediately complied, but the other one seemed to fight more. Mavis concentrated harder, not breaking eye contact, until finally- "I will let you through, and forget seeing you." said the second guard, stepping aside.

Mavis and Johnny stepped into the pentagon, and Mavis quickly led Johnny through the corridors. They passed many people, most of whom were dressed formally. The two of them got some funny glances from the guards and the people working in the pentagon for their rag-tag clothes.

Finally, they reached a door. On the door was a bronze plate with the name: _General Stephen S. Clecius_. "Wait a second." said Mavis. She turned into a bat and squeezed right under the crack of the door, which was surprisingly large. There was a click, and Mavis opened the door.

When Johnny went into the room, the first thing he noticed were all the monster pictures and the maps. Johnny grabbed a notebook labeled "Captured monsters" and opened it. Sure enough, there were many monsters who were already taken hostage. A dozen gremlins, blobby, even some of the wolf pups.

"We should wait here, so when the general comes in, we can take him down and interrogate him." said Mavis.

Johnny shook his head, "No, it's too risky, what if he brings other people with him?"

Mavis thought for a moment, "We'll ambush them, here, you go behind this closet." she quickly ushered Johnny behind a large wooden cabinet. "I'll turn into a bat and hide somewhere else." she said, and turned into a bat and flew off to another corner of the room.

There they waited, for nearly 20 minutes, when they finally heard speaking coming down the hallway.

"Yes, yes, I understand George, but you have to realize that the potential that these specimens have in biological warfare is insane." said a gruff voice.

"I will not accept it," said a second voice, "You attack an innocent man and his wife, burn a hotel to the ground, slaughter a village filled with innocent people, just for this so-called progression."

"This," said the first voice, "Is the face of progression! It is the sacrifice that needs to be paid."

"You disgust me." said the second voice.

A second later the door opened and two men walked in. Mavis recognized one of them immediately as General Clecius. The other one was older, with greying hair and a mustache.

As soon as the door closed, Mavis made her move. There was a flash of purple light, and with super speed Mavis had General Clecius pinned to the ground with one hand and had taken the pistol on his belt and was pointing it at the other person.

Johnny walked out from behind the cabinet.

General Clecius was struggling, but Mavis made sure that he wouldn't escape. "Listen, old man," growled Mavis, "my name is Mavis Dracula, and you're going to tell me why you attacked me."

General Clecius growled, "Miss Dracula, there is only one reason why I attacked you...because your dead body serves more purpose than a living one."

This angered Mavis. Her eyes glowed bright red, and she grabbed Clecius's neck, "Where is your laboratory?"

General Clecius struggled under her grasp, "I won't tell you anything." he said, "Nothing!".

Mavis handed Johnny the pistol so she could have more control. "If you will not say anything, then perhaps some _persuasion_ is needed." With that, her eyes began glowing red, "You will tell me where the laboratory is."

General Clecius struggled. At first, he didn't say anything, but eventually words began to form, "The laboratory is at….augh! Stop!" Mavis concentrated even more, "It's….It's….in…" General clecius looked as if he was literally choking on his own words.

"It's in….Colorado…" Mavis, without breaking eye contact, asked, "Where in Colorado?" General Clecius began to gasp, clutching his throat, "Its….In….OURAY." he yelled the last word, as a result of bottling it up so much.

"Ouray, Colorado?" asked Mavis. "Yes...It's there…."

Mavis stood up, then looked at the other person in the room. "And who are you?" asked Mavis. The other person looked terrified, "Please don't hurt me ma'am, I'm George Winfer, US internal affair advisor."

Mavis looked at him, then her eyes began to glow red.

"Wait, Mavis, wait." called Johnny. Mavis's eyes stopped glowing red, "What?"

"We might be able to use someone like him." said Johnny, looking at George.

Mavis frowned, "We can't trust him, he'll be the government's little spy."

Just then General Clecius tried to get up, but Mavis look at him in the eyes, "Go to sleep." she said. With that, the general fell asleep.

George took this slot of time to try to defend himself, "Please ma'am...I've been on your side since I heard the news about you. What the government is doing right now is wrong."

Mavis looked at him, then sighed, "Fine, I won't mind wipe you. But you better not try anything fishy with us or you'll be who I come for next."

George looked relieved and extraordinarily happy at the same time, "Thank you Mavis, thank you Johnny."

Mavis and Johnny both went to the doorway and opened it. Without wasting any time, they quickly went to the entrance of the pentagon and went outside.

"Alright," said Johnny, "So we know the location of their stupid laboratory."

"Yeah." said Mavis, "I need to tell my dad the location so he can get there as well. Maybe we could meet up there."

When Johnny and Mavis reached the hotel, Johnny had a plan in mind. "Alright, we'll stay here until the day after tomorrow, then we can get onto a plane, go to Colorado, and destroy that damn laboratory."

Mavis nodded, "Alright." she said.

Johnny turned on the TV and went to the news channel. So far, nothing new.

Meanwhile, on the bed, Mavis was closing her eyes and concentrating. She was trying to telepathically contact Dracula, but no response was coming through. She mumbled something about bad toothpaste and got up.

For the rest of the day, Johnny and Mavis did nothing but shopping and some sightseeing. They took a selfie in front of the White House, and took some pictures of the Washington memorial.

By the end of the day, both Johnny and Mavis were tired. Mavis had to go to the bathroom to wash off all of the sunscreen she had to use to protect her, and Johnny went and laid down on the bed.

That night, at 9:00 pm, Mavis asked, "Do you think we'll ever have a normal life again?"

Johnny turned around on the bed, "Well, after we blow up the laboratory and show the world how sick the pentagon has been, maybe."

Mavis chuckled to herself, "I don't think it'll be that easy, but okay."

Johnny leaned over and kissed Mavis, "Listen, after we blow up the laboratory, whether or not our lives are normal after that, it'll always be awesome with you in it."

Mavis blushed and cuddled closer to Johnny, "Thanks Johnny." she said, and slowly felt herself going to sleep…


	6. Crash

"And what happened again, General Clecius?" asked the Pentagon Security Chief.

General Clecius was sitting on a chair opposite of the security chief and immediately responded, "I'm telling you sir, I walked into my room, and-and I can't quite remember what happened after that."

The security chief looked both worried and angry, "Your pistol is missing, your uniform is ripped up, your eyes are red, you look as if you've been through hell and back."

General Clecius shook his head, "I honestly don't remember what happened sir."

It was 1:00 am, right after the pentagon janitor had went into General Clecius's room and found him unconscious on the ground. The janitor had called the security chief immediately afterwards.

The security chief fumed, "Tomorrow, we will run a full investigation of your room. We _will_ find who did this."

"Aren't there security cameras in the area?" asked General Clecius.

"There are, but none of them are near your room." growled the security chief.

General Clecius rubbed his forehead, "When you get your results," he said, "tell me, _immediately_."

* * *

Mavis opened her eyes. It was still 4:00 am in the morning. _Probably just my nocturnal side kicking in_ she thought.

She turned around to see Johnny, but when she did, she realized that the bed was empty.

"What…?" Mavis looked around, but realized that she wasn't in a hotel. She didn't know where she was. It was so dark she could barely see three feet ahead of her. "Johnny?" called Mavis. No answer. Panicked, Mavis got out of the bed. As soon as her feet hit the ground, some of the darkness cleared, and she saw a glass window right next to her bed. When Mavis looked through the window, she gasped with horror. It was Johnny, suspended in chains. Tubes dribbled acid down his body, and every time a drop of acid hit him, he screamed with pain. Mavis pounded the window with her vampire strength, but suddenly realized that her strength was gone. Mavis could do nothing but watch. All around her, she heard the pained screams of Johnny, each one growing louder and more real after the other, until-

"JOHNNY!"

Mavis fell out of the bed, panting. Behind her, Johnny was scrambling out of bed as well, a pistol in his hand, "What? What happened?"

Mavis looked around. She was in the hotel, Johnny was alive. She began to cry, throwing herself face first at her pillow.

Johnny went over to her, "Mavey? What happened?" he asked, this time more cautiously.

Mavis didn't respond, keeping her head buried in her pillow.

Johnny set his gun down, "Mavey, it's fine, you're fine." He gently took Mavis and flipped her over.

Mavis, holding back tears now, said, "I dreamed tha-that you were dy-dying." she cried.

This took Johnny aback, "Look Mav, I'm fine, you have nothing to worry about right now." Johnny leaned down and kissed Mavis, this time holding it for a few seconds.

Mavis hated herself for being so stupid. She should have recognized it as a dream. Mavis wrapped Johnny in a tight embrace, "I wish life would just return to normal." she murmured.

Johnny sighed, "If wishes actually came true that would be great." Johnny set Mavis down, "I'll make breakfast, you should go and scout around as a bat."

Mavis nodded. She needed something to distract herself with. She quickly turned into a bat and flew out the door.

While Johnny baked some bagels in their hotel's complimentary microwave, Mavis flew up and looked around. She saw some cars entering into the hotel's underground parking lot, a few others going to the gas station, and some people hanging out at the pool. Nothing much happening. Until…

Mavis suddenly spotted three identical black SUVs speed through the streets. Like, seriously passing the speed limits. They were heading through the route that led to the pentagon.

 _Why're they rushing?_ Thought Mavis.

Mavis quickly gave chase, following the SUVs from above. The SUVs screeched to a halt in front of the pentagon, sending gravel flying. A dozen men in formal dressing came out, carrying suitcases and some even carrying guns.

Mavis followed the men into the building, and saw what they were doing. General Clecius's room had become a crime scene, with the investigators crowding inside the room, taking pictures, scanning the room, and in the corner was the man himself, General Clecius.

Mavis knew that General Clecius wouldn't be of help to the investigators. She had deliberately erased his memory after making the general fall asleep.

Mavis didn't wait any longer, she immediately flew out of the pentagon and went right back to the hotel, where she turned into a vampire back inside the room.

"Hey Mav." said Johnny, still wary of her nightmare, "Saw anything?"

Mavis nodded, "Investigators at the Pentagon. General Clecius doesn't remember anything 'cause I erased his memory, but the investigators can probably figure out that it was us if they really try."

Johnny sighed, "We'll leave in the afternoon then. The investigators won't be able to come up with a conclusion too easily."

Johnny grabbed a bagel and tossed it to Mavis, who caught it using telekinesis without even glancing at it.

As Mavis ate the bagel, Johnny asked, "Have you tried contacting your dad yet?"

Mavis shook her head, "He was unresponsive last night, I'll try again after this bagel."

After breakfast, Mavis tried to contact Dracula. She concentrated, and the green fog filled her eyes.

 _Dad, you there?_

There was silence.

 _Dad?_

 _What? Oh! Mavis! You got to me!_

 _Yeah, listen dad, we got the location of their laboratory._

 _Really? Tell me then._

 _It's in Ouray, Colorado._

 _Ouray? Where's that?_

 _Don't ask me, it's supposed to be a small city._

 _Ah okay. I assume you and Johnny are okay right now?_

 _Yes we're fine, how about you?_

 _I'm fine, I'm hiding in the Tongass forests right now with Frank and some other friends._

 _Oh that's good._

 _Augh, I've got to take care of something._

 _That's fine, bye!_

 _Take care, Mavey._

With that, the connection was cut.

Johnny and Mavis left the hotel room at 11:30 am, and walked four miles to the airport. There, Mavis mind controlled the ticket person to give them free direct flight tickets to Durango, a city 3 miles south of Ouray.

At the airport, Johnny and Mavis were both a little more relaxed. Nobody saw them in Washington. It should be fine. Their plane was scheduled to take off at 3:00 pm, so Johnny and Mavis had plenty time to talk.

Mavis's mind was still mainly on her nightmare. That dream still shook her to her core even after half a day. Johnny comforted her by telling her it was just a dream, telling her that reality was different. But Mavis was less certain about the dream. It was so lifelike, so real. _Whatever_ , Mavis thought, _It's gone now_.

At 2:45 pm, however, Johnny's phone rang. Johnny frowned. He had hard wired his phone to be undetectable from other people. How could someone find his phone number?

Johnny picked up the phone and imitated a New York accent, "This is John Burck speaking, how may I help you?"

Mavis giggled. John Burck was not a name she was expecting.

Through the phone, Mavis could hear a voice talking frantically, and the man on the other side talked, Johnny's expression grew more urgent.

"What?" he said, "They're coming to the airport?"

More babbling from the other side.

"Okay," said Johnny, "Thanks George."

Johnny set down the phone, "The police are coming to this airport. They figured out that it was actually us who had knocked out Clecius."

Mavis growled, "These guys are getting on my nerves, next time I should just kill the general. And who was calling?"

Johnny turned around, "It was George."

Mavis sighed, "More running then, where are the police right now?"

"Probably at the entrance of the airport by now, if I were to guess."

Sure enough, at the other end of the airport, they heard yelling, and suddenly a dozen police officers ran through the security check as they flashed their FBI certifications. Johnny and Mavis quickly busied themselves to make it seem as if they weren't suspicious.

"They're here somewhere." Johnny heard one of the police officers say.

The police officers had started to fan out, and were showing people pictures of them, asking if they saw Mavis or Johnny.

By then, an announcement came onto the intercom,

 _Flight A673 to Durango, Colorado is now accepting B and C class passengers_

Johnny and Mavis quickly ran to the line, being at the very front, then walked to the front counter where they gave the lady they tickets.

The Lady scanned their tickets, then said, "Thank-"

The Lady's eyes widened, she recognized Johnny and Mavis from television. Before Mavis could mind wipe her, she yelled, "They're over here! Hurry! The terrorists!"

There was yelling and screaming, as the police ran over and saw the two of them. Gunshots rang out in the gate, and people began to scream, running from the fray.

Mavis and Johnny both quickly ran down the jet bridge, Mavis stealing a gun telekinetically.

As Mavis and Johnny got into the plane, Johnny didn't hesitate. He pointed his gun at the flight attendant, "Close the door, NOW!" The plane attendant screamed something like, "Don't kill me!" and quickly closed the door.

There was yelling and the sound of bullets hitting the plane, but nothing got through.

Mavis and Johnny entered the cockpit, Johnny pointing the gun at the Pilot, "Get this plane off the ground, NOW."

The pilot had to comply. The engines began, and the plane began to slowly accelerate.

Mavis gestured to Johnny, "Take care of the passengers who are currently on board."

Johnny nodded, and left the cockpit. The passengers looked terrified. "Alright all of you, calm down." said Johnny, "none of you are gonna die as long as you guys shut up."

"Aren't you guys terrorists?" asked a dude in the second row.

Johnny sighed, "A common misconception. No, we are not terrorists. The only terrorists here is the government."

He turned to the flight attendant, "Give these people the best food and wine you've got." The flight attendant nodded quickly, still staring at the barrel of the gun, which was pointed at her.

Meanwhile, the plane began to pick up speed, and soon enough, they were in the air, flying way above Washington.

Johnny went into the cockpit, where the pilot and co-pilot were flying the plane, with Mavis watching them. "Get us to Durango, Colorado."

The pilot sighed, "You guys won't win you know." he said.

Johnny growled, "We aren't the bad guys here, just get us to Durango."

The pilot flipped some switches, "As you wish."

A few minutes into the flight, Johnny checked back on the passengers. Most of them looked tense, as if he was going to shoot them.

"Relax, I'm not gonna shoot you guys." said Johnny, rolling his eyes, "Hey, ma'am, can I have a glass of beet juice?"

The plane attendant looked terrified at Johnny calling her "ma'am", "Yes sir." she said, scrambling away.

A few seconds later, Johnny gave Mavis some Beet juice, "Thanks." said Mavis, sipping it.

A few minutes later, however, a voice came onto the intercom:

 _This is the US air force, land the plane, NOW._

"Shit." murmured Johnny. He glanced out the cockpit window, and sure enough, there were two F-18s right next to the plane.

 _You have one minute to comply_

Mavis looked at Johnny, "What do we do?"

 _You have 45 seconds, we will shoot down the plane_

Johnny sighed. There were too many innocents on board. But at the same time, if they landed the plane, Mavis would almost certainly be captured. And he wasn't going to let that happen, no matter what the cost was. So he did something which he felt really bad about later.

Johnny walked over to the pilot, "activate emergency exits. Now." The pilot looked over at him as if he was crazy, but complied.

Johnny got onto the intercom, "Alright guys, so we're gonna be crash landing over the White Mountain Forests, if you want to live I would suggest bracing for impact."

Johnny then pointed his gun at the pilot, "Crash the plane."

"What?" said the pilot incredulously.

"You heard me, crash the plane. Or else I'll shoot." said Johnny.

Mavis looked worried, "Johnny, if we crash the plane, the authorities will still get us, you know."

Johnny grinned, "Who said we'll be in the plane when it crashes?"

 _You have fifteen seconds_

Mavis looked at him, "What are you thinking of?" she asked.

Johnny shrugged, "Maybe you could, you know, turn into a bat."

Mavis thought about this for a second, "I'm not sure if that would work. I mean, the altitude."

Johnny sighed, "Listen, there's no other way. Pilot, crash it, NOW."

The pilot hit some buttons, and immediately Johnny felt the plane losing altitude.

Johnny and Mavis went next to the emergency exits nearest to the cockpit, watching the altitude indicator.

20,000 feet…..10,000 feet...5,000 feet…

"Mavis, NOW!" yelled Johnny, ripping open the emergency doors.

Johnny was free falling for the first few seconds, but suddenly he felt a force grab his shirt and drag him up.

Johnny looked up to see Mavis, as a bat, carrying him. They flew down, until Mavis finally dropped him in the forest. A few seconds later, they heard a loud _boom_ , as the plane crashed into the forest.

Mavis transformed back into vampire form, coughing. When she turned around, she saw Johnny, sitting up.

Johnny grinned, "Wow, I didn't think that would-"

 _BOOM_

A bomb exploded right in front of Mavis, knocking her back. "Mavis!" Johnny ran over, checking on her. She didn't look too bad, apart from a cut on her face and a bleeding arm. A second missile crashed into the trees near them, as the F-18s swooped around for another missile strike.

Johnny helped Mavis up, "Come on Mav, let's get out of here." Another missile crashed into a tree and disintegrated it. Mavis turned around and redirected the next missile telekinetically back at the F-18, blowing up. The other F-18 opened fire with its machine guns, spraying the ground with bullets.

Mavis managed to transform back into a bat, making her tiny in size, and grabbed Johnny, pushing him back behind a tree. She flew out from behind the tree and charged the F-18. A second later, there was a loud explosion, and the F-18 crashed. Mavis rematerialized in vampire form in front of Johnny. Except now, she had a bullet wound in the stomach.

"Mavis, I got you." said Johnny gently, slinging off his duffel bag and grabbing some band aids. He quickly applied the last TXA he had and put on some band aids.

Mavis collapsed on the ground, breathing hard. "Must...keep….moving." she gasped.

Johnny nodded, although it pained him to see Mavis hurting so much, "Take it easy, Mavey."

Mavis couldn't walk any further after three miles. She collapsed, leaning against a tree. Johnny grabbed his tweezers and said, "Mav, this is going to hurt, but you have to trust me." Mavis nodded.

Johnny, after alot of screams, managed to get the bullet out. "There, now there's nothing in your body anymore." he said. "Your regenerative flesh will work out Mav, don't worry." Mavis didn't say anything back, she was already asleep.

Johnny grabbed an airplane blanket that he had stolen and wrapped it around Mavis, then he grabbed one for himself and fell asleep, thinking about what to do the next day.


	7. Desperate

The next day, Johnny woke up first, partly because it was cold, and partly because there was a woodpecker drilling a tree three feet away from him.

Johnny shooed away the woodpecker, then checked on Mavis. Her arm still had a nasty cut on it, but it was healing. Same for cut on her cheek. What really worried Johnny was Mavis's second bullet wound. Her bleeding had stopped, but the wound was still as fresh as ever. Quickly, Johnny replaced the bandages and then thought about what to do next.

They were in the middle of nowhere, they had no food, barely any supplies, and Mavis had a bullet wound.

Johnny suddenly had an idea. It was probably not going to work. Johnny rummaged around inside his duffel bag until he found a dog whistle. He had received it as a gift from Wayne. Johnny, hoping for a miracle, blew on the dog whistle.

Johnny didn't hear anything, as the whistle was too high pitched for him to hear it. He just hoped that Wayne or another friendly werewolf would show up.

* * *

 _Mavis? Mavis?_

 _Ugh uh…._

 _Mavis, hurry up and say something dangit_

 _Uuuh...it hurts_

 _Mavis, food, bagels, SCREAM CHEESE._

Mavis's mind cleared.

 _Dad?_

 _It's me Mavey, are you okay? You sound as if you're hurt right now._

 _Yeah, I took a bullet wound to the stomach._

 _Are you dying?_

 _I don't think so...but my head hurts, so make it quick_

 _Alright, point is, I've got all the monsters I could get my hands on. We're going to Ouray right now. Do you think you can make it by next week?_

 _I don't know...our plane crashed over some forest in the middle of nowhere…_

 _Ah I see…_

 _We can try to meet you guys in Ouray next week, but with my bullet wound I'm not sure…_

 _It's fine. Listen, just stay safe. Trust nobody but Johnny and I, and try to make it to Ouray by next week._

 _Alright dad, I'll try._

With that the connection with Dracula was cut. Mavis opened her eyes. It was morning, with a mist hanging over the forest. Johnny was sitting next to her, tending a campfire that he had created. Mavis tried to get up, but cried out in pain when she did. This wound was much worse than her shoulder injury.

Johnny turned around and saw her, then ran over, "Careful Mav, don't injure yourself any more." he said, helping her back down.

Mavis complied, laying back down. Her vision was slightly blurry, but at least now she was able to process her surroundings.

"Did you…" she saw the dog whistle clutched in Johnny's hand, "did you blow the whistle?"

Johnny nodded, "Yeah, it's hopeless though, thinking that Wayne could hear it all the way from here…"

"Yeah well," Mavis wrapped a part of the blanket over her knees, "I spoke telepathically with my dad, he's on his way to Ouray. We should also get going."

Johnny hesitated, "You can't go anywhere in your state Mav," he said, "You're too weak right now."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "My regenerative flesh will kick in, just as you said yesterday."

Johnny stopped her again when she tried to get up, "Listen, how about this, we can start moving in a few hours, but for now, we need some food. All we have are these bagels that we saved in my duffel bag."

Mavis looked out into the woods. "Let me see if I can do something." she murmured, "Give me some time."

Johnny nodded and went back to tending the fire.

Mavis silently watched the trees, until finally…

 _Crunch_

Mavis managed to telekinetically snap the neck of a squirrel. The strength needed to do this was alot though, and she felt herself temporarily black out.

Johnny looked over and saw the dead squirrel, "Nice Mav!" he ran over and grabbed the squirrel, using a sharpened stick to try to skin it.

Mavis grumbled something about rusty bullets and retreated back into her blanket.

Johnny eventually managed to completely skin the squirrel and cooked it, then tore the meat in half and gave some to Mavis.

"Thanks…" murmured Mavis, swallowing the whole thing in one bite.

"Listen Mavis, if you truly think you can walk within a few hours, then we'll get moving, but if you can't, then we'll stay put." said Johnny, "The government's been sending out search parties for us, I heard some of them last night."

Mavis nodded in understanding, "I can walk Johnny, trust me."

Johnny glanced at his watch, "Well...we'll leave in an hour, but for now you need some more rest."

Mavis grumbled, "We can leave right now."

"Not under my watch we aren't," said Johnny, "You look as if you got swallowed by blobby."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Fine."

An hour later saw the two of them packing up. By then, Mavis was able to stand up and walk, but was extraordinarily dizzy every time she tried to do so. She had to lean on Johnny whenever she stood up.

As they began trekking north, Mavis's breathing got a little steadier, and her legs began to actually listen to her and walk.

As Mavis and Johnny made it four miles north, they suddenly heard voices. Immediately, Johnny helped Mavis behind and tree, and Johnny himself poked his head out from behind the tree and looked around.

Sure enough, straight ahead of them was a group of three soldiers walking straight at their position.

"How the hell are we supposed to find the vampire in this place?" asked one of the soldiers, "I can't even tell which way is up in this forest."

"Shut up and just keep walking," said another soldier, "Remember, if we kill the vampire, we can get alot of money. Investigators reckon the F-18 managed to get a bullet through her before the jet went down, so if we find her, she'll be nice and vulnerable."

Johnny turned to Mavis and whispered, "They're heading straight for us, we're going to have to fight."

Mavis nodded weakly. She didn't even know if she had enough energy left in her to use telekinesis.

As the voices grew even closer, Johnny whispered, "Attack on the count to three."

"One...two...THREE!" Johnny charged out from behind the tree and punched one of the soldiers in the face. Mavis also came out from behind the tree, using her vampire strength to strangle the other two.

While Mavis was suffocating the other two soldiers, the last one was locked in a fistfight with Johnny. The soldier got his M16 knocked out of his hands when Johnny attacked. Johnny got hit in the face, but the soldier eventually succumbed after Johnny punched him directly in the gut, making the soldier throw up and pass out on the spot.

Johnny grabbed the M16 and turned around, just in time to see Mavis get punched in the face by the last soldier. The other one was already dead, on the ground. Just as the last soldier raised his gun, Johnny fired his M16, killing the last soldier.

Johnny ran over to Mavis, who was groaning on the ground, "Mavis get up, get up."

Mavis slowly got to her feet. She had a trace of blood on her mouth.

"Are you okay?" asked Johnny

Mavis shook her head, collapsing and fainting right there…

When Mavis opened her eyes again, she was in a cave. In the center of the cave, there was a campfire burning. She was wrapped up in her airplane blanket, and there was a duffel bag sitting next to her.

Mavis was about to wonder where Johnny was when she saw a note on the ground.

 _Went to find more firewood, stay in the cave, don't go anywhere_

 _-J_

Mavis sighed and wrapped the blanket around herself again. She looked out the cave and saw that it was nighttime.

A few minutes later, Johnny clambered back into the cave, "Ah, you're awake." said Johnny, seeing Mavis.

Mavis smiled lightly, "yeah, and even better, my bullet wound seemed to have healed alot."

Johnny shrugged, "I think it heals faster when you sleep."

Mavis glanced out the cave again, "Where are we?" she asked.

"In the Uraian Mountains, about four miles north of where you fainted and twenty miles south of Ouray." replied Johnny crisply.

"You carried me four miles?" asked Mavis incredulously.

"Well, we had to get away from the soldiers, so yes, I did." said Johnny conclusively, chucking some more firewood into the campfire.

Mavis leaned over and kissed Johnny, then asked, "So what else happened?"

Johnny shrugged, "Nothing much. My phone has no data out here, and when we reached the cave nothing else happened."

Mavis suddenly noticed two backpacks in the corner of the cave, "Then what're those?" she asked.

"Some backpacks which I stole from the soldiers. They have food and water." said Johnny.

"And weapons?" asked Mavis

"Here." Johnny tossed Mavis an M16, "I got one for each of us, even though you don't really seem to need it."

Mavis blushed, "Let me try walking." she said, then got up.

Immediately a wave of dizziness hit her and made her double over. "You got hit hard by that soldier, Mav. I wouldn't try anything too drastic right now." said Johnny.

Mavis didn't give up. She continued trying until finally, she was able to stand up straight and walk, even if it did cause her alot of dizziness and pain.

That night, Mavis and Johnny had ramen noodles, since it was warm and it came with the backpacks that Johnny stole. Mavis savored every noodle, trying to get as much flavor out of each one, and Johnny couldn't blame her either. He was starving as well.

As Mavis and Johnny ate, Johnny said, "There's a main road a few hundred meters down the mountain. We could hijack a car and go to the lab in the car."

Mavis shrugged, which caused her considerable pain, "Sure. That way we can get there faster at least."

Suddenly a green fog filled Mavis's eyes, and she heard her dad's voice in her head,

 _Mavis!_

Mavis immediately responded, almost dropping her noodles.

 _Dad, what is it?_

 _Mavis, do not go to Ouray, don't go near that place!_

 _Why not? We're only twenty miles out._

 _They have weapons that are far beyond your imagination, do not go there!_

 _What? How do you know? Where are you?_

 _I was captured by the humans, I'm in their laboratory. Mavis, they want us vampires because they can use vampire blood to make a chemical weapon._

 _You're in the lab? I'll go there! I'll get you!_

 _No Mavis! You cannot. You must stay alive for my sake!_

 _I'm not going to let you die in a laboratory, dad._

 _You musn't come close to this facility! They have all sorts of-_

Mavis closed the connection, "We're going to that laboratory." she said.

Johnny was staring at her, "You just froze up and starting smoking." he said lamely.

Mavis swallowed the rest of her ramen, "My dad just sent me a telepathic message. He's been captured and is in the laboratory. We have to get him."

Johnny immediately became serious. Dracula was his closest friend, his father in law. "We'll get to the laboratory tomorrow." he said.

Mavis suddenly didn't care about her bullet wound anymore, she stood up, "We have to go now! My dad might die any moment!"

Johnny tried to calm her down, "You're still weak, you can't fight."

"I can fight! I can't just let my dad die!" cried Mavis, "We have to go now! We're so close!"

Johnny grabbed Mavis's arms, "Listen, if we go to the laboratory right now, your dad will die and so will both of us. We'll leave first thing tomorrow morning. Got it?"

Mavis glared at him, "Fine, _first_ thing tomorrow morning.".

Johnny exhaled, "Come on, lets get you warmed up."

Johnny helped Mavis onto the ground, then wrapped her in a blanket. He kissed Mavis on the forehead, "Tomorrow, you'll see your dad again."


	8. Loss

The next morning, at 5:00 am, Mavis woke up. She had rolled around alot last night, but this morning, her mind was clear.

She quickly got up, and swallowed a bagel. The sound of her eating woke up Johnny. "Mav, are you alright with your bullet wound?"

Mavis shrugged, "It's gotten better."

It was true. Although she was still in pain, the wound had begun to close.

Johnny got up, "Alright well, a promise is a promise, lets get packing."

Within three minutes they were ready. Johnny had dismantled the campfire and threw its remains off the side of the mountain, and the two of them began trekking their way down to the main road.

Every step of the way caused pain for Mavis, but she tanked through it, ignoring the pain. _This is for my dad_. She kept telling herself. By the time they reached the main road, it was 5:30 am. The two of them stopped there, looking for a car.

For nearly thirty minutes, not a single car went through the main road. This was, after all, in the middle of nowhere. Finally, the sound of a car engine came into hearing range.

Mavis looked around just in time to see a red pickup truck rumble into view. Without hesitating, Mavis walked out from behind the tree, and telekinetically smashed the glass of the car window.

"What the hell-" yelled the man in the car, but Mavis was already doing her magic, "Give me the car keys, NOW."

The man in the car handed over his car keys, and Mavis opened the door, and threw the man out. "Come on!" she gestured to Johnny.

Johnny ran over and slid into the shotgun seat. Mavis looked over at the man in the snow, and said, "You will remember NOTHING." The man's eyes blanked out, and he fell back into the grass.

Mavis, ignoring the pain from her stomach, hit the gas pedal, and the two of them sped off at 90 miles per hour towards Ouray.

While driving, Mavis said nothing. She was focused on one thing and one thing only: getting her dad out of that laboratory, if he was even still alive.

As they sped through the road, the mountains grew taller and soon they were driving through snow and fog. Alot of fog. Eventually they reached a sign that said:

 _Welcome to Ouray!_

 _Population 983_

A few hundred feet after that sign, they were in the city. All around them, there were small farm houses and wooden shacks, but something was missing…

"Where is everyone?" asked Johnny.

Mavis also noticed the oddity, "I don't know...the lab probably has something to do with this."

They drove further into town. Eventually, they reached the town square. A circle of buildings surrounded the square, and roads led outwards in all directions. The buildings were dusty and old, showing signs of not being cleaned or cared for in a long time.

Johnny and Mavis got out of the car, both armed with their M16s and carrying backpacks.

Johnny looked around. "So...where do you think this laboratory is?" asked Johnny.

Mavis didn't answer at first, "Maybe we need to go-"

 _You will not go anywhere._

Mavis and Johnny both turned around in time for a massive 20-foot tall thing to stomp out of the mist. It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie. There were guns on its arms, shoulders, and even legs. A missile pod was installed on its shoulder, pointed right at them.

At first, neither the mech nor Johnny and Mavis made a move, then Mavis initiated the attack by transforming into a mist. Johnny made a distraction by blasting the mech with M16 bullets. Although this didn't do anything to the armor, it did create alot of sparks that probably annoyed the pilot.

As mavis flew towards the Mech as mist form, the mech shot a spherical ball of energy at the mist. As soon as this sphere came into contact with Mavis, she was turned back into vampire form and was blasted backwards.

"Mavis!" yelled Johnny. Mavis managed to get back up, and Johnny turned around, spraying bullets at the mech, making sparks go flying everywhere.

Mavis growled, this time actually mad. She turned into a bat this time, flying up. The mech fired bullets at Mavis, but she managed to avoid all of them.

Mavis dived at the mech, landing on its back and then sliding onto the front of the cockpit window. She turned into mist right in front of the cockpit and seeped into the cockpit, strangling the pilot and throwing him out of the mech. Behind her, someone else tried to shoot the mist, without any avail obviously, and Mavis flew to the back of the mech and strangled the co-pilot as well.

Mavis forced the cockpit open, "Get in!" she yelled. Johnny clambered into the cockpit and got into the co-pilot seat. "Do you know how to work this thing?" he asked.

Mavis was trying to figure that out. As she was fidgeting with the controls, another mech came lumbering out of the mist. Mavis saw it and said, "Johnny? Anything?"

Johnny desperately looked around, and saw a button labeled, "MGA". He punched it without thinking.

The mech they were in suddenly activated its missile pods and fired. All the missiles missed except for one, which hit the arm of the enemy mech.

The enemy mech began firing bullets, causing the cockpit window to become covered with sparks. The enemy mech then fired missiles, blowing off an arm.

"Okay lets get out of this thing!" yelled Mavis, punching through the glass and turning into a bat.

Johnny had to use part of the windshield as a shield as he clambered down from the ruins of the mech.

Already, Mavis had turned into a bat and was inside the enemy cockpit, killing the pilots and copilots.

When Mavis rematerialized, she had a new cut on her forehead and walked with a slight limp.

"Mavis, you okay?" asked Johnny.

"I'm fine, come on, the mechs are coming from that way." said Mavis, pointing towards the place where the mechs came from.

The two of them ran towards the mist, and soon they reached what looked like the entrance of a nuclear fallout bunker.

Mavis tried opening the door. It was locked.

"Should've known that." growled Mavis. She grabbed the door with both hands and tore it off its hinges.

Behind it, there was a hole with ladders leading down.

Mavis and Johnny both climbed down the ladders, and soon reached a hallway lit with electrical lighting. There were doors lining the hallway, and as Mavis went to each door and peered through the window, she also used her extra-sensory perception to hear what was going on.

All but one of the rooms were full. As Mavis looked into it, she gasped. It was Dracula, tied down on a chair, with people surrounding him. Some of the people asked Dracula questions, while others were shining bright lights into his face. As she watched, one of the men grabbed Dracula and punched him.

Mavis's blood rose to her face. Ignoring the risks, she punched the door open, and walked right in. Behind her, Johnny ran in, firing his M16, killing dozens of people. Mavis ignored most of the people, but she went straight for the one who punched her dad. Without hesitation, Mavis grabbed the person, and smashed him against the wall so hard that it caused the ceiling to shake.

Within a few short minutes, the room was cleared.

Mavis ran to Dracula, nearly in tears with joy, "Dad, I'm here, I'm here."

Dracula seemed more worried than relieved, "Why did you come? I told you not to-"

"There they are!"

Behind them, a dozen soldiers lined up. They raised their weapons and fired. Mavis managed to jump out of the way, grabbing Dracula and pulling him with her. Johnny ran behind a metal closet on the other side of the room, returning fire.

Mavis peeked her head over the table she was hiding behind. Johnny had taken out three of the soldiers, but eight soldiers still remained.

Mavis turned to her dad, "Dad, come on, fight!", with that, she turned to mist and charged the enemy soldiers, punching and pummeling like she had never done before.

Dracula joined her, fighting and strangling anyone who he saw. Johnny fired his M16 into the crowd of enemy soldiers, taking out several of them.

After they killed the dozen soldiers who had found them, another squadron ran down the other end of the hallway, blocking their path. Before Mavis could charge at them, however, Dracula yelled, "Wait!"

Mavis looked up at him, "What?"

Dracula pointed at the squadron, "They have a gravity fist."

"A _what?_ " Mavis turned around and looked at the enemy squadron. Sure enough, the man at the front had what appeared to be a metal fist that glowed blue.

"I thought those only came from sci-fi." said Johnny, staring at the fist.

"They did, until these filthy humans got their hands on frank. They used his immune system to create a gravity hammer." growled Dracula.

"Well, what do we do then?" asked Johnny.

The enemy squadron didn't move forward. They simply stood their ground.

Mavis shrugged, "There's only one way out, and those guys," she gestured to the squadron that was blocking them, "are the only ones in our way."

Without any warning, Mavis then charged straight at the enemy at super speed, killing two immediately and going for the person with the gravity fist.

"Mavis! No!" yelled Dracula, springing into action after her daughter.

The soldier with the gravity fist fired it. The metal fist flew at Mavis, glowing dangerously blue. Mavis rolled out of the way just in time, but the gravity fist continued flying and hit Dracula.

Dracula went flying, hitting the opposite wall and sliding to the ground, not moving.

Mavis saw Dracula, and let out an inhuman screech. The next three seconds were quick, simple, and brutal, but by the end of it, the entire squadron was a pile of bones, and Mavis was by Dracula's side.

Dracula coughed blood, his eyes were unfocused. "Mavis…?" he asked.

Mavis leaned down, "I'm here dad." she said softly

Dracula coughed again, "Mavis, I won't make it."

Mavis shook her head, "Don't say that dad." she was in tears by now.

"I promised your mother that I would protect you, that I would raise you to become the best you could become." Dracula whispered, "I hope that I have accomplished that."

Mavis was openly crying now, "Dad…"

Dracula sighed, "And Johnny…"

Johnny walked forward, into his view, "I'm here, drac."

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to Mavis," said Dracula, "Keep her safe, let her see the world. Don't make my mistake."

Johnny nodded, trying to keep a brave face on, "I will." he whispered.

"You two need each other more now than you've ever needed each other." said Dracula, "Promise me..that you will live. Both of you."

"We'll live, Drac," said Johnny, trying really hard to hold back tears now.

Dracula sighed, "Thank you…"

Dracula's eyes glazed over. He was dead.

Mavis cried. Johnny got up and wrapped Mavis in a hug.

"Well well well, if it isn't the two lovebirds."

The door at the other end of the hallway opened, and two squadrons of soldiers ran through, pointing their weapons at the two of them.

Mavis didn't even look up. She clenched her fists, and immediately immobilized everyone in the squadron with telekinesis. She then snapped her fingers, and all of the soldiers' necks snapped.

Mavis walked over to the door where the soldiers came through and opened it. At the other side, there were scientists and chemists running around.

Mavis didn't show any mercy. With a wave of her hands, everyone apart from herself and Johnny had their necks snapped.

Mavis barged into one of the rooms, scaring the crap out of the scientist who was desperately trying to shred files. "You will tell me," growled Mavis while choking the scientist at the same time, "Who had the idea to create this place?"

The scientist gasped, "It's….It's...his name's...Carter Wilson."

Mavis threw the scientist across the room, where he lay there, either unconscious or dead.

Mavis and Johnny both walked out of the laboratory, climbing the ladder to the surface, then got back into their car.

That night, the two of them hid in a hotel in Telluride. Johnny didn't say anything, but was actually watching Mavis closely. He didn't like how she was so quiet.

That night, as the two of them lay in the hotel bed, Johnny turned over to face Mavis, "Are you...okay?"

Mavis was staring at the ceiling, "No."

Suddenly, without warning, Mavis wrapped Johnny in a tight embrace, catching Johnny off-guard, "My father is dead, my mother is dead, you're all I have left." she said.

Johnny nuzzled Mavis's cheek, "I know," he murmured, "I know."

 **damn if you've made it this far might as well go farther right?**


	9. Following

Mavis woke up to the sound of a microwave beeping. She sat up, and looked around. Johnny was warming up the last two bagels that they had saved from the crashed airplane.

Johnny saw her and walked over to Mavis, "Want some chips?"

Mavis nodded, "Anything."

It was then when Mavis realized how hungry she was. She had practically slaughtered the entire population of the laboratory, of course she was supposed to be hungry.

Johnny tossed over a bag of chips, which Mavis caught easily.

"Thanks." mumbled Mavis, as she opened the bag and poured all of its contents into her mouth in one gulp.

Johnny grabbed the two bagels and spread cream cheese all over both. He handed one to Mavis, who stared at it for a while before eating it.

"I miss scream cheese." she said.

Johnny smiled lightly, "Who doesn't?" he asked.

Mavis swallowed the bagel as well, trying to ignore the one thing that was bugging her in the back of her mind. The one thing that was making her so angry on the inside…

Her dad was dead.

Mavis felt tears coming to her face again, but wiped them away quickly. Johnny noticed and walked over.

"Your father's last words told us to stay alive," said Johnny gently, "For his sake, you have to stay strong."

Mavis nodded, "I n-never considered what would happen if he d-died. He was a-always there for me."

Johnny didn't know what to say to that. In all honesty, he never spent too much time around family. He didn't know what it felt like when you lost a family member who was close to him.

Mavis wiped another tear away, then stood up, "You're right, I shouldn't be crying. Dad wouldn't want me to cry. I'll go outside and bat scout."

With that, Mavis turned into a bat and flew out the door.

Johnny turned around and sat on the bed, turning on the news channel. There wasn't alot of new stuff on there. There was news on him and Mavis hijacking the plane, but apart from that nothing new. The government seemed successful in covering up the laboratory's ruins.

Johnny shrugged, grabbed a bag of chips, and continued watching the news.

 _...Meanwhile, the Castle Lubov, famed for its legends of Vampires, is officially being raided by the US government for classified reasons. While critics point out the ethical problems of raiding a historical and century-old castle, the US government assures the public that the reasoning behind the raid is for the greater good._

Johnny sat straight up, "What?"

A few minutes later, Mavis returned. "Mavis, thank goodness, you have to see this."

Mavis walked over, "What is it?" she asked, looking worried from the urgency.

Johnny rewinded the TV a few minutes, "Listen to this."

Mavis's face grew stonier and stonier as she listened to the news report. "Now they want to raid my parents' home." she said, crushing a pebble with her fists.

Johnny watched Mavis with a little anxiety, "Should we go there? It probably has something to do with Carter Wilson. He's the one who's doing all this anti-monster stuff anyways."

Mavis hesitated, "I don't know...It seems like a trap, doesn't it? Right after their big laboratory is destroyed, they suddenly decide to raid a random castle based off of vampire legends?"

"It's our only lead right now." said Johnny.

Mavis sighed, "Time to take a little trip back home then." she said.

"Wait, wait." said Johnny, "Let me see your bullet wound first."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "It's fine, Johnny, I feel okay."

"Lemme just see it, Mav." pleaded Johnny.

Mavis laid back onto the bed, "Fine." she grumbled, telekinetically crushing another pebble outside.

Johnny lifted Mavis's shirt lightly, and looked at the bullet wound. It had definitely healed alot, but the wound was still a centimeter deep.

"Yeah, it really has healed," murmured Johnny, "But you still need to take it easy."

Mavis sighed with impatience, "C'mon, lets get going."

A few minutes later, the two of them were packed up. They walked over to the Telluride airport, which was only about five minutes away from the hotel, and booked flights to Galena, a city fifteen miles away from the Castle Lubov.

"Remember," said Johnny, "We're going international right now, so we gotta keep our heads low, we don't want us to become international terrorists as well."

Mavis nodded. She had never been to Europe. Well, she _had_ been there when she was only a few months old, but after the humans raided the castle, her dad was forced to hide her in America.

Johnny suddenly spotted a TV on the side wall, which had the news channel running,

 _...The castle Lubov raid, which is being led by the US government, has also received support from France and Italy. The operation is to begin in two days._

"Mavis, they're going to start their operation in two days," whispered Johnny, "It says they also have the support of Europe."

Mavis growled, she suddenly didn't want to go to Europe, "Why can't they see that we aren't the bad guys?"

After going through the security check (The two of them had to mind wipe some of the TSA agents to smuggle their guns through), and getting seated at their gate, Mavis checked the ticket.

"We're leaving in an hour, at 9:00 am." she said.

Johnny suddenly felt his phone start vibrating. He picked it up, and answered the call, "Hello," he said in a thick New York accent, "How may I help you?"

The person on the other end talked rapidly, and after a few seconds, Johnny had abandoned his New York accent, "Oh hi George."

"I just wanted to congratulate you on destroying the laboratory." said George, on the other side, "You've got the Pentagon in a panic here."

Johnny grinned, "It was alright, hey George, do you know anything about the Castle Lubov raids?"

George paused, "I heard about it as well, and I admit it is a little fishy, but it seems to be for a reason not involving the pentagon."

Johnny thought for a moment, "Do you recognize the name Carter Wilson?"

"Yes, he's the head of Weapons Development in the Pentagon. Why?" asked George.

"I think he's the reason why the government is after us." said Johnny, "Keep an eye on him for us, will you?" with that, he hung up the phone, not wanting to extend the call and risk detection.

Mavis looked at Johnny, "What did George say?"

"Carter Wilson is the head of Weapons Development in the government, and George believes that the Lubov raids are separate from the pentagon, but he's not sure." said Johnny.

Mavis frowned, "Well, I think we should still go to Castle Lubov, I mean...where else do we have to go?"

That was a good point.

Johnny shrugged, "Yeah, we'll check it out, see if we can get any information on Carter Wilson there, but if we can't, then we'll head straight back to Washington and find where Carter is."

Mavis nodded in agreement, "Yeah."

Some time later, a voice came onto the intercom:

 _Flight A561 to Galena, France is now accepting passengers class B through C._

Mavis and Johnny kept their heads down when they gave their tickets to the lady at the front, remembering what happened last time. She scanned their tickets, gave them back, and without even looking at them, said, "Next."

Mavis and Johnny walked down the jet bridge with their duffel bags, then went into the plane, relieved that they were safe at last.

A few minutes after they got onto the plane, a voice came onto the intercom,

 _Thank you for flying with JetRed Airlines. Today we will be flying to Galena, France, the flight is estimated to take about 6 hours and 58 minutes, depending on the weather._

The plane was only about a third packed. Galena didn't seem to be a very large city. As Mavis and Johnny got settled down in a seat in the center of the plane, Mavis whispered to Johnny, "I don't like this."

Johnny knew what she meant. So few people meant that they were more likely to be recognized.

The two of them stayed tense for the first hour, not wanting to be spotted. When the flight attendants came around, Johnny didn't even look at them while ordering.

It was only two hours into the flight when Johnny noticed something strange happening. A few rows ahead of them were a group of men wearing tuxedos, and as Johnny eavesdropped on their conversation, he realized why they were there.

"...you know, Carter thinks that he'll find some relics in Castle Lubov, says that if they actually have magical properties then he could use them to create new weapons."

"That's crazy, all this magic bullshit, you know that you can't trust that type of stuff."

"Harry, you haven't even seen what went down at the laboratory. That crazy ass vampire and her husband barged in. Pretty much all the security footage shows us that the vampire can turn into bats and even fog. You can't explain that with science."

"Psh, delusional as usual, you'll see, all that's gonna be in the Castle is a buncha garbage that serves no purpose to us."

Johnny woke up Mavis, who was sleeping on his lap. "What..?" she asked groggily, getting up.

"Listen to those people in the tuxedos a few rows in front of us." whispered Johnny, pointing.

Mavis concentrated, using her extra-sensory perception to hear. "They want to take dad's artifacts." she said after a while.

Johnny nodded, "Those guys are going to same place as we are, we can follow them after we get off the plane."

Mavis frowned, "That doesn't make sense though, how did they find out about the castle basement?"

"Your castle had a basement?" asked Johnny.

"Yeah, that's where Dad hid all his relics so the humans wouldn't get them." said Mavis, rubbing her forehead.

"I don't know, but point is, they know that there are relics, and they're looking for them. And they also mentioned Carter." said Johnny.

"They mentioned Carter?" asked Mavis, her blood rising to her face as she remembered the laboratory.

"Yeah, they said that if they get the relics-"

"Then they'll be able to create weapons." finished Mavis, "but they didn't mention Carter when I listened in."

"Well they did when I listened. We can get alot out of this Castle." whispered Johnny excitedly.

"Well, lets keep track of where those slimeballs go." growled Mavis, glaring at the men. She had no remorse when it came to killing these types of people.

Johnny put a hand on her arm, noticing her sudden change in tone, "Woah, don't get too heated yet, you can finish them off later."

Mavis sighed, "So much killing for so little gain." she glared at the men.

Johnny wrapped his arm around Mavis, "Come on, I'll tell you when the plane is landing. You'll need some sleep."

Mavis didn't try to resist Johnny. She set her head on his lap and fell asleep almost instantly.

Johnny, while cradling Mavis in his lap, leaned over and tried to listen to the men a little more. By now, some of them had fallen asleep.

"Anyways, if they actually have relics, think about all the advances we could make. We could break the deadlock in Iran easily!"

"But what's the point of all these fantasies if those relics don't actually exist?"

"If they don't, then we lose nothing but time, and we'll be able to catch up later. Anyways, Carter is going to be at the castle in person, and he rarely ever does that."

Johnny gaped, this was too good. He had the weapons, Carter, and his accomplices all in one area.

"They better have good security too if Carter goes, he's always paranoid that someone will find him and attack him, and I can't say I blame him."

"You guys are all too nervous, you act as if the vampire and her husband is on this plane right now, ha!"

"Ah, well, once I get _this_ beauty to Carter, he won't have anything to fear about."

Johnny quickly crouched behind his seat, hiding his face. The last thing he needed was to fight his way out of another airplane. But what was the last person talking about? What was " _this_ beauty"?

A few hours later, the pilot came onto the intercom,

 _We are now descending over the city of Galena. Please buckle in your seat belts._

Johnny nudged Mavis a little, "Mav, get up."

Mavis woke up, "We there?" she asked groggily.

Johnny nodded, "Yeah, it looks beautiful out the window."

He wasn't lying. Outside the window, he could see lush green forests, snow-capped mountains, and small ponds here and there. The city below them looked as if it was some farmer's town, with small farms in everyone's backyard and children playing here and there.

Mavis stared outside too, "It really is…" she murmured.

The plane touched the ground a few minutes later, and the pilot said through the intercom,

 _Welcome to Galena, local time is 8:21 am, temperature is 45 degrees fahrenheit._

Johnny and Mavis silently slung their duffel bags around themselves as the passengers began to disembark. A few rows ahead of them, the men in the tuxedos got up. One man carried a bronze-colored suitcase, while the other men surrounded him.

Johnny leaned over to Mavis, "That suitcase...I think we should take it."

Mavis looked up at him, "Why? What's so special about that?"

Johnny whispered, "I eavesdropped a little more, those people mentioned some sort of secret thing they were carrying. Apparently they need to give it to Carter."

Mavis nodded, "So Carter himself is going to be there...I can't wait."

Johnny and Mavis followed the men, making sure that they never left their sights. Tracking the men to Mavis's birthplace.


	10. International

Johnny and Mavis did great tracking the government officials until they got into a car. Mavis managed to use extra-sensory perception to hear what they were saying in the car.

"They're going to go to Castle Lubov, but they're stopping at a grocery store for something." said Mavis.

Johnny hailed a taxi, "Let's stay with them then."

When Mavis and Johnny got into the taxi, Johnny hastily told the driver, "bring us to Castle Lubov, use the shortest route you know possible."

The driver nodded and said, "Sure." A second later, the taxi was driving down the main road of Galena. Johnny took out his phone and took pictures of the forest and the town. In front of them, the taxi with the government officials went into a plaza and dropped off the men.

"Wait! I changed my mind, go into that plaza!" yelled Johnny, pointing.

"What? You can't just change routes in the middle of-"

Mavis took the initiative then, "Go to that plaza, now." she said, her eyes glowing red as she used her vampire powers.

The taxi driver turned around, then sped into the plaza at 120 miles per hour, and dropped them off. "You won't need any money for this one." said Mavis. She then closed the door, and the taxi sped off.

Mavis and Johnny silently crept around the plaza, towards where the government officials were. The men had walked into the grocery store, and the guy with the suitcase was talking to a person who was already there.

Johnny asked, "Mavis, can you-"

"Already on it."

Mavis concentrated, and her extra-sensory perception kicked in.

"...So this is the reactor core we took from frankenstein, eh?"

"Yes sir," said the guy with the suitcase, "we managed to recalibrate its hyperneural pathways to power this."

Mavis peeked over the corner of the wall and saw the person with the suitcase open it and show what was in it to the other person. From Mavis's angle, she couldn't tell what it was.

"Impressive," said the other person, "this will surely be able to blast open that pesky vault that Dracula built to protect his relics."

Mavis growled, now they were insulting dad.

"That is why I brought it sir. Believe me, if three hundred pounds of C4 couldn't get through that door, then that means that we need something on a new level. This is it." said the man with the suitcase.

"Very well, get it packed up and we'll get going to the castle immediately." said the other man.

Mavis turned to Johnny, "They're going to use the thing in the suitcase to blow up the basement doors, we have to take it!"

Johnny nodded, "Come on, lets follow them."

The two of them ran over to a random car parked in the area. Mavis used her telekinesis to open the door and start the engine, and the two of them sped off after the government officials.

Soon enough Mavis and Johnny were literally right behind the car, following it through the main road. Eventually, the car made an abrupt right turn onto a dirt road, and Mavis followed, jerking the steering wheel hard to the left.

For 15 minutes, they followed the car, until suddenly-

"Why are they parking their car here?" asked Mavis.

The car that the government officials were in came to a halt, and men started coming out of it. Men with guns.

"I think they noticed that we were following them." said Johnny quietly.

Mavis jumped into action, opening the door and turning to mist.

"What the-" Johnny heard one of the men yell, right before he was clobbered in the face by his own gun.

Johnny ran out, grabbing his M16 from his bag and opening fire. He shot two people before a bullet grazed him, putting a cut across his cheek. Johnny ducked behind the car doors and reloaded.

Mavis was taking most of the fight herself. These government officials were much better trained than the people she had fought before. They were harder to hit, and actually had decent reflexes.

Mavis turned into a bat and punched one of the officials in the eye, making him scream and fall to the ground.

Johnny ran over, firing his M16 and killing more guards, "Mavis, the suitcase!" Mavis turned into mist and went right next to the car, smashing the front seat window and throwing the driver out of the car. The guy in the shotgun seat fired his gun, but the bullets simply went through the mist. Mavis strangled him as well, then grabbed the suitcase, flying out of the car with it.

By then only a few guards were left, probably seven or so. Johnny opened fire, but the guards were hiding behind the car doors, which seemed to be bulletproof.

Mavis quickly ran behind the car, opening the suitcase, and grabbed what was in it. It looked like a large power drill, which three blue glowing orbs attached to the back of it.

Just as Mavis was about to destroy it, a helicopter suddenly swung into view above them. It was an attack helicopter, and fired its machine guns, forcing Mavis to roll out of the way.

Johnny managed to flank the guards that were hiding behind the car, using his M16 to cut them down. He then ran over and began firing at the helicopter from behind the car.

Mavis finally turned into mist and grabbed the drill that she had found in the suitcase, but the helicopter saw her and launched a missile, which exploded right next to the mist. It didn't harm Mavis, but it made her concentration slip, forcing her to turn back to vampire form.

Mavis threw the drill to Johnny, who threw it into his bag, then Mavis turned to mist and flew at the attack helicopter, which was helpless to do anything to defend. A few seconds later, the helicopter exploded in midair.

Mavis rematerialized next to Johnny. "Mav, you okay?" Mavis nodded, "I'm fine, I'm fine."

The sound of helicopter blades suddenly came into hearing range. Behind them, a convoy of military trucks sped down the road at them.

"Those are the reinforcements the guards must've called," said Johnny, "I say we capture one of their vehicles and use it to get to Carter."

Mavis was thinking the same thing. "Let's go and blow these asshats away then." she said, turning into a purple mist again.

Johnny crouched behind the fallen car that they were stalking and fired at the cars that were speeding at them. He saw one of the trucks suddenly careen sideways and slam into another truck right next to it and grinned, knowing he hit the tires.

Mavis managed to get into one of the helicopters and kill the pilot while keeping the helicopter stable. She slowly aimed the helicopter at the convoy and fired, blowing up two more trucks before another helicopter hit the back of Mavis's helicopter with a missile, forcing her to turn back to mist and fly out.

The convoy of trucks opened fire, having machine guns attached to the top of them. Mavis quickly went to where Johnny was hiding and rematerialized. "What now?" she yelled above the roar of gunfire.

Johnny yelled back, "We need to-"

BOOM

The two of them were thrown back as a missile collided with the car, disintegrating the car and sending both Mavis and Johnny flying off onto the side of the road.

Mavis groaned and got up. Her hearing was extremely blurred, all she saw was fire and the explosions.

Johnny got up immediately and grabbed Mavis by the arm, pulling her behind a tree right before a missile hit the place she was just in.

The convoy of military trucks created a semicircle around the area they were hiding in, cutting them off from the main road. Bullets flew all around them. A tree literally got cut down because so many bullets were going through it.

Mavis came to her senses just in time, "We got to go deeper into the forest!" she yelled, "We have to hide the weapon!"

Johnny nodded, and the two of them made a run for the forest. Bullets flew at them from all directions, until finally, Both Mavis and Johnny reached the forest. Behind them, they heard the sound of military dogs and men yelling orders.

"Come on Mavis, come on." said Johnny, grabbing Mavis's arm and dragging her through the forest. The two of them went deeper and deeper into the forest, until finally they reached a clearing. To the side was a pond.

Johnny guided Mavis to the pond, then said, "Hold your breath for as long as possible." Right before the soldiers got to the clearing, they both submerged.

Mavis didn't have trouble holding her breath, she could hold it for five straight minutes without breathing, as a vampire. The water was murky and dark, but at least it provided decent protection.

After a straight minute underwater, Johnny made a hand signal to Mavis, go up.

Both of them went to the surface, and looked around. There were no soldiers. They must've moved on deeper into the forest.

Johnny and Mavis, both of whom were soaking wet now, got out of the water and began to run towards a direction in the forest in which Johnny really hoped the soldiers didn't go.

They ran for twenty straight minutes before Mavis finally said, "Johnny….I can't…"

Johnny looked back, "We have-" then he noticed Mavis's condition. All the transforming and telekinesis and breath-holding must've tired her out, because by now, her face was literally chalk-white.

"Okay, Mavey, come on…" Johnny looked around and spotted a group of bushes growing closely together. He helped Mavis over, and then made her lie down in the center of the bushes. It was a very tight fit, and it made Mavis slightly claustrophobic, but it was a well-hidden area.

Johnny also got in, "Mavis, dya have any bullet wounds?"

Mavis shook her head, "I don't think….so…" her voice was very labored, as if each word cost a great deal of effort.

They suddenly heard a group of soldiers nearby, and Johnny quickly said, "shhh."

The soldiers meandered around a little, looking behind trees and inside of logs.

"They're not here, come on, we gotta keep moving." said one of the soldiers.

There were footsteps, and their voices were lost in the forest.

That night, after countless search parties went through the area they were in, Johnny concluded that the soldiers had stopped searching.

Johnny got out first, with his M16, and pulled Mavis out of the bushes with him.

When Johnny neared the edge of the road, he peered through the trees cautiously. The entire area looked as if it was on a lockdown. Soldiers and investigators milled around, Tanks and humvees were parked in the middle of the road.

Johnny quickly retreated back into the woods, and said to Mavis, "We gotta find a place to hide."

One hour later…

By now, Johnny and Mavis had found a decent hiding spot. They were well-hidden behind a group of bushes that grew next to a large tree. It was well concealed both from soldiers and from helicopters.

Throughout the night, Johnny found it hard to sleep. Mavis had fallen asleep as soon as she lay down behind the bushes, but to Johnny, it was not as easy. The military started blaring out messages in the middle of the night, saying stuff like, "It's hopeless, come out and surrender." or "You're surrounded, you have no chance of escape."

Johnny smirked, if only these guys knew what type of stuff he and Mavis had been through, they wouldn't say something like that so easily.


	11. Defeat

Carter Wilson opened the door to the massive chamber and walked to the center of it. All around him, the cold stone walls created massive shadows, bathing him in darkness.

In front of him, there was a table, with a person sitting behind it. Carter couldn't see the person's face, as it was hidden behind a light that was being shined on him.

"So…" said the person at the table, "The vampire and his...human accomplice escaped."

Carter stood up straight, "Sir, we know that they're in the forest around Castle Lubov, we just don't know where exactly. We've shut down all the airports and-"

"Enough," growled the person at the table, "Do you think that I don't know about the security measures you have placed? They are pointless. Miss Dracula and her little human pet will certainly find a way through it."

There was a silence, broken by Carter, "But sir, the Castle is of utmost importance, if we manage to break into the vault-"

"Which we are now unable to do, thanks to your careless mishandling of a multibillion dollar weapon!" roared the person behind the table.

Carter fell silent, shivering a little from the cold.

"This is what's going to happen," said the person softly, "you will withdraw all our forces from the facility at Moscow, and bring them to Castle Lubov immediately. You will find Miss Dracula and her human and kill them both. You will bring the body of the vampire to me, and then we will have the final ingredient to building our weapon."

Carter nodded fervently, "Yes sir."

* * *

Mavis opened her eyes. It was in the morning, the sun was barely up, streaking the sky dark blue. She pushed herself up into a sitting position and looked behind her, where Johnny was still snoring into the grass.

Silently, trying not to wake up Johnny, Mavis grabbed the duffel bag that Johnny was carrying and opened it, taking out the drill-like thing that she had taken, and examined it.

The drill itself was small, the tip of the drill having weird inscriptions on the front of it that glowed blue. The three orbs attached to the back of it were filled with a thick liquid/gas that pulsated blue as well.

As she leaned closer to the drill to observe the markings on the side of it, she heard a loud snap.

Mavis immediately ducked her head back down beneath the bush level, then slowly peered out. A few feet away from their bush was a panther. It stared at her hungrily. Mavis shrugged. She could use with some food actually.

A few seconds later, she was skinning the panther with her fingernails, which under normal circumstances would be disgusting, but when you're an international terrorist, you have to do what you have to do.

Eventually Mavis managed to start a fire as well. She had learned from watching Johnny make fires so often. She covered the fire with a thin layer of dirt, which concealed the smoke, then began cooking the panther meat.

Eventually, the sound and smell of cooked panther caused Johnny to wake up. "Mavis, you're already awake."

Mavis smiled and kissed Johnny, "Yes I am, c'mon, I killed a panther for breakfast."

Johnny looked at the fire Mavis had started and nodded grudgingly, "Not bad, I suppose."

Mavis plucked a piece of panther meat and swallowed it, "mmmm...not bad actually. Tastes like chicken."

Johnny cautiously ripped off a large piece and also ate it. Sure enough, it was pretty good. "This is the good stuff." mumbled Johnny as he took a second piece from the panther.

Johnny then noticed something, "Hey, they stopped broadcasting those dumb messages."

Mavis looked confused, "What messages?"

"After you fell asleep last night, they started broadcasting these dumb messages. Stuff like 'give up you're surrounded', or 'you better surrender'. As if they knew what we've been through."

Mavis ripped a panther leg off and swallowed the whole thing, "So what are we going to do?"

Johnny shrugged, "I was thinking about that. We can hide out here until the feds give up on us, or we can hike north to Glennisville."

Johnny suddenly froze, "Mavis..look behind you."

Mavis did, and when she looked behind herself, she saw a weird metal orb levitating a few feet off the ground. It had an antenna that was attached to the top of it, and on the front of it was a red glowing circle.

Before Mavis could even react, the orb saw her. Instantly it turned back and began to fly away.

"No! Augh." Johnny grabbed his M16 and opened fire, missing a few shots but finally hitting the drone on the back, blasting a hole through it.

Mavis looked back at Johnny, "Why did you do that? That gun is loud, you know?"

Johnny put the gun back into his bag, "It doesn't matter, that was a spy probe. The feds probably sent hundreds of them into the forest."

Sure enough, Johnny and Mavis could already hear yelling. The soldiers had heard Johnny's gunshots.

Mavis and Johnny began to run, Mavis pretty much dragging Johnny with her.

For a few seconds, they were actually doing pretty well, then they stumbled across a clearing with about a dozen soldiers who were resting.

As soon as the soldiers saw them, they yelled, scrambling for their guns and firing.

Mavis quickly killed everyone in the clearing, then they continued moving, weaving through trees and rocks and bushes until-

"Oh no." said Mavis.

They had reached the edge of the main road again. Mavis growled for her own stupidity. Why did she have to run in the direction they came from?

In front of them, a dozen tanks stood waiting, their guns pointed right at the two of them.

"You gotta be kidding me." said Johnny.

Mavis didn't hesitate. She turned into mist and shoved Johnny behind a rock. A second later, there was a _BOOM_ and a bright flash of light as all the tanks fired, incinerating the area the two of them were just in.

Mavis flew out as mist and began hampering with the tanks, destroying the engines, going into them and killing the crew, etc.

Johnny suddenly had an idea. He reached into his bag and pulled out the drill-like weapon. "Time to find out if you were actually worth your cost." said Johnny to the drill. He then pointed the drill at the nearest tank and pulled the trigger.

A solid beam of blue light shot out, cutting through the tank as if it was butter. The tank exploded, sending hot metal flying everywhere. But, even better or even worse, the beam didn't go away.

"Augh, how do I turn this off?" asked Johnny to himself as he blew up tank after tank with the weapon. The beam then cut through two trees and a rock, when he was finally able to find the button on the side of the drill that turned off the beam.

Mavis rematerialized in front of Johnny in vampire form, "That's some weapon we got." she commented, staring at the drill.

Behind them, the voices of soldiers came into hearing range.

"Come on." said Mavis, grabbing Johnny and dragging him through the main road. As they ran down the road, they suddenly heard a loud _boom boom boom_. Ahead of them, a massive mech stomped into view, except this one was much larger and much more advanced-looking then the ones Mavis and Johnny saw the laboratory.

Mavis immediately turned to mist, but the mech shot a spherical orb of energy, similar to the one shot by the smaller mechs, that forced Mavis back into vampire form. Mavis got back up, growling.

A voice came through from the mech, _Surrender now!_

The mech fired a weird transparent purple laser that missed Mavis, instead hitting a rock. The rock flew back at the mech, disappearing in a chamber that closed right after the laser was turned off.

Johnny then knew the purpose of the mech. It wasn't meant to kill, it was meant to capture.

Mavis still jumped around the mech, nimble and swift as always, trying to get to the cockpit, but whenever she got near, the mech simply activated flaps that pushed Mavis away.

Behind her, Johnny fired his M16, knocking out a few smaller weapons that were on the mech, and causing alot of annoying sparks for the pilot.

Mavis eventually made her first mistake. She landed on the ground right as the mech activated its purple laser at that precise point. Mavis was instantly pulled towards the chamber, but she managed to cling onto a rock that was imbedded on the ground.

"Mavis!" yelled Johnny. He ran over, trying to help Mavis, tugging on her arm. Mavis felt herself becoming weaker and weaker, "Johnny...let go." Johnny shook his head, "I can't do that Mav."

"You….have...to."

Mavis finally lost all her strength, and the beam sucked Mavis into the chamber.

"No! Mavis!"

Johnny growled with anger, a scowl appearing on his face. He grabbed the drill, pointed it at the mech, then-

 _Crunch_

The mech's arm came out of nowhere, hitting Johnny hard and sending him flying. The last thing he remembered was flying nearly twenty feet up, then falling...


	12. Unite

"Good," said the man behind the table, "So, we finally have the vampire, yes?"

Carter nodded, "Yes sir."

"So we can make the weapon?" he said impatiently.

Carter shifted uncomfortably, "Sir, according to the texts we retrieved from Moscow, the vampire must first forfeit her honor."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? How do you forfeit your honor?" asked the man behind the table.

"Like, to put it in simple terms, we must make them do something that they would find...unsavory." said Carter.

"Hmmmm," The man behind the table thought, "The girl just lost her father, didn't she? Make her renounce her family."

Carter nodded fervently, "A most intelligient plan, sir."

* * *

Mavis groaned. She opened her eyes. Then she looked around. The last thing she remembered was getting sucked into a mech by a giant purple laser.

Why was she alive? Didn't the feds want to kill her?

Mavis was in a square cement room with a one-way window on the other side. She was sitting on a cot. Mavis tried to get up, but immediately regretted it. Dizziness and vertigo quickly forced her to sit back down.

The door opened, and two guards entered. The grabbed Mavis's arms and forced her to stand, causing her to feel as if she was about to throw up, and made her walk out of the room.

Mavis felt as if she was already going to die of dizziness. Her eyes were unfocused. She made out a hallway, made out of cement, with multiple cells lining the walls. She couldn't concentrate enough to figure out anything else.

Mavis was brought into a larger square room, where she was forced to sit down at a chair. In front of her, she saw a man, dressed formally, looking at her.

"Miss Dracula, how are you feeling?"

The only thing she could respond with was, "ugh...uh…"

"I take it that you are well then." said the man, "Miss Dracula, we require some information from you."

Mavis could barely concentrate.

"We need you to say you hate your father, mother, and your husband."

Mavis barely heard the man, "Uuuh...what?"

The man impatiently waved his hands, and a soldier injected Mavis with something. Instantly, half the dizziness went away.

"I repeat," said the man, "We require you to say that you hate your father, mother, and husband."

Mavis growled at him, "You think I'm just going to comply so easily?" she asked, "I would rather go through hell and back than say that." with that, she spat at the man.

The man sighed, "A woman of spirit, I must credit you with that. But unfortunately, I'm not as kind as I look."

He signalled to one of his soldiers, who took out a baton and hit Mavis in the gut with it, hard. Mavis had the wind knocked out of her.

The man looked at Mavis, "Just say it," he said, "say it, and nobody has to get hurt."

Mavis growled at him, "Never."

* * *

Johnny woke up in a cave. He knew it was a cave because it was cold, the walls were uneven, and the ceiling was made out of stone.

Why was he in a cave? Johnny didn't know.

Standing right next to him, watching him, was George.

Johnny stared at him in wonder, "George, what're you doing-"

"Shhh." George hushed Johnny, "There is much you must be curious about right now. I will explain."

Johnny listened, for the next thirty minutes, to George's story. How he had quit his job at the Pentagon without warning after he learned of a group of people who supported Johnny and Mavis in an extremist way. He had gathered as many of those insurgents as he could get his hands on, and then waited, watching the news for anything about the two of them. After he learned of the operation at Castle Lubov, he knew that Johnny and Mavis would go there, so he and his insurgents all flew a stolen private jet to a city not far from Lubov. They had set up camp in the woods, and heard the fighting. As they ran to see what was going on, Johnny had apparently fallen out of the sky and, quite luckily, fell into the mud near a pond. George had ordered the insurgents to bring Johnny back and to not attack.

Johnny rubbed his forehead, "so you're telling me that there are still people out there who support us? Where are they?"

George smiled, "They're in the other cave. Come, I must introduce you to them."

George led Johnny down a cave that branched off from his cave, and after a few seconds in torch-lit lighting, he came into a much larger cave. This one had cushions and a carpet spread out underneath. People wearing various camouflage jackets were sitting down. All of them had guns. There were probably thirty people in the room, give or take.

As soon as Johnny came into the room, the room grew silent. Then, George said, "My friends, meet Johnny, Mavis's husband."

Immediately the insurgents all rushed forward, eagerly wanting to shake Johnny's hand, asking of his adventures.

"Is it true you blew up an entire military laboratory in Colorado?" asked one gruff looking man.

"Yeah." said Johnny, not wanting to go to deep on that one since it was the place Dracula died.

The insurgents laughed, "You got a lot of nerve for a man so young." said another man.

Eventually, the crowd thinned out, and Johnny began to get into formal introductions. George was the leader of the insurgents, and the second-in-command, Gerschiv, was an Austrian insurgent who used to work as a janitor.

"I might not be the best educated person in the world, but if you need someone to shoot the hair off an ant from five miles away, you call me." said Gerschiv, shaking Johnny's hand.

Then there was Fletcher, an American McDonalds worker who joined George after he told him of his plans over a McDonald's big mac. He was skinny, but knew how to cook very well.

There was also Erasmus, a Philosophy major drop-out from Harvard University.

"This kid's a bookworm, I wouldn't trust him around a gun." said Gerschiv, poking at Erasmus's AK-47, which was propped out underneath him.

George told Johnny that they were safe in the mountains, about thirty miles north of where they found him. It was only after George brought him to his room when he noticed something. The bed was...small. Why did it look small? Then it dawned on him.

"Mavis! We have to get Mavis!" Johnny yelled.

George stopped him, "You are both weak and tired, attempting a rescue mission right now would be suicidal."

Johnny growled, "What does it matter? The government will kill her at any moment. We need to leave now!"

George put his hands on Johnny's shoulders, "Stop. First off, Mavis is not going to die any time soon. She has to first forfeit her honor. Second off, you need more sleep."

Johnny cocked his head to one side, "What do you mean, 'forfeit her honor'."

George sighed, "She would have to do something that is, to her, extremely dishonorable. Something that would cause her shame for the rest of her life."

"Well that doesn't help!" yelled Johnny, "They're probably torturing her, starving her."

"Mavis is strong, she won't give in so easily. You need time to rest and heal. Tomorrow, we will consider a rescue attempt." thundered George.

Johnny glared at George, "Fine, but tomorrow, we _better_ get some progress done with saving Mavis."

George smiled, "I can see why Mavis fell for you, you truly do love her."

With that, George left the cave room.

* * *

Mavis groaned, she didn't know how much more pain she could take.

"Just say it." said the man, "say it, and all this pain, all of it, will just be gone."

"Ne-Never." groaned Mavis, then screamed again as the guard slowly cut her back.

The man growled, "You frustrate me Mavis, I'll give you that." he said, "no matter, we will resume our, ah, interview tomorrow."

The guard injected her with the dizziness drug again, and led her out of the room.

With that, Mavis was thrown back into her cell. That night, she could only sleep face-down, since her back had so many cuts on it that sitting on her back would cause pain.

As Mavis lay there, she could only think of one thing, whether or not Johnny was alive, and if he was, whether or not he was planning on raiding this place, wherever it was.

* * *

The next day, there was much debate and argument in the cave where Johnny was sheltered.

"The Himalayan Mountains?" roared Gerschiv, "Impossible, our men aren't equipped for that environment."

"I say, why not?" yelled another man from across the room, "Any moment now, the feds are gonna get their hands on their secret weapon. How many lives will be lost then?"

"If we go there now, we risk destroying everything we worked to build!" yelled James, a british insurgent.

George silenced everyone, "My friends, we are not only raiding the facility for weapons and money, we're raiding it mainly because Mavis Dracula is being held there."

There was silence.

"Then what are we waiting for?" asked James, "That changes everything!"

"Aye, lets go bash some bucketheads!" yelled Gerschiv.

Even Fletcher put down his book, "I say we go." he said.

"All in favor of raiding the facility in the Himalayas, rescuing Mavis, and whipping some sorry ass say aye!"

"Aye!" roared the entire room.

"Alright, so we'll be able to make it to the Himalayan s by tomorrow afternoon," said George, "My intel suggests that there will be around sixty guards. Although this is more than how many men we have, we do have the element of surprise."

Johnny stepped forward, he had already agreed with George for this. "Me and Gerschiv will be leading the attack on two fronts. Gerschiv will initiate the attack, taking out the exterior guards. Then I will lead a group of twenty men into the facility and rescue Mavis, while Gerschiv and the rest of our men will lead a raid on the weapons storage, and grab whatever crap you can find. Teams will be assigned en route."

There was mumbling and side talk, but the crowd dispersed, grabbing weapons and ammunition. George tossed Johnny an assault shotgun. Johnny grinned, "Sick dude."

The entire insurgent force boarded the private jet that was stationed out the back of the mountain. George went to the controls.

Alright boys, lets move out. Said George through the intercom.

A few minutes into the flight, Gerschiv and Johnny began picking their team members. Johnny had Fletcher and George, along with 18 other insurgents on his team, while Gerschiv had everyone else.

Johnny saw that most of the men looked nervous. They were fidgeting with their guns, as if unsure of what to do.

Johnny turned to Gerschiv, "These guys have seen battle, right?"

Gerschiv replied in a low tone, "Alot of them haven't, I don't think anyone in your team has seen battle apart from George and Yoshi." he said. Yoshi was a japanese insurgent, who waved when Gerschiv pointed to him.

Johnny sighed, "Great."

As the private jet flew over the border of France, Johnny began to tense up. Perhaps it was the fact that he was rescuing Mavis, or perhaps it was the fact that this was the first battle he was going in without her, but Johnny felt scared, for the first time in a long time.

* * *

The door to Mavis's cell opened at 1:00 am in the morning. A guard dumped cold water over her head and forced her up, then beat her with a baton on the gut, then forced her out of the cell.

Mavis was marched over to the interrogation room again, and forced to sit. The same man as before was sitting there smiling.

"So, Miss Dracula, will you say it?"

Mavis spat at him, "Pain won't make me say crap, you piece of shit."

The man smiled, "Then perhaps we can convince you through this…"

He waved his hands, and suddenly the one-way glass on the other side of the wall became transparent. And on the other side, was… "Dad?" asked Mavis.

It was Dracula, hanging upside down on chains, with all sorts of tubes dribbling acid down his body. It was just like the dream with Johnny.

Dracula screamed, "Mavis…" he gasped, "Mavis...please…" he screamed again as more acid came into contact with his skin.

Mavis cried, trying to break the bonds that held her on the chair, but couldn't. Something was preventing her vampire strength from coming back.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT?" she screamed at the man, "WHY?"

The man simply looked at her, smiling, "I want you to say it." he said icily.

"I...I…" Mavis looked at her father, being tortured on the other end of the glass, "HE'S DEAD, HE'S DEAD AND YOU CAN'T CHANGE THAT. THIS ISN'T REAL." she screamed.

"Is it real, now?" asked the man, "Perhaps, you would like me to show you your beloved husband, Johnny?"

He waved his hand, and the glass turned back to one-way glass. He pushed another button on the control panel in the corner, and the glass opened up again, showing the exact same scene, except it was Johnny instead of Dracula.

Mavis's screamed, trying to get out of the chains, it couldn't be real. They couldn't have gotten Johnny.

"You don't have him!" she yelled at the man, "You can't!"

The man smiled, "Who said we don't have him? You don't know what happened after we captured you, do you?"

Mavis sobbed and rocked back and forth on the chair. Her eyes were transfixed on Johnny. It was something she hated looking at, but somehow had to.

"This isn't real, this isn't real….this isn't real…" she said to herself. Then Johnny screamed again, begging Mavis to end it…


	13. Rescue

"Good," said the man behind the desk, "Very good. So we are building the weapon?"

"Yes sir." said Carter, "We are in the process of creating it."

"The girl forfeited her honor then? She renounced her family?"

"Yes," said Carter, "She did put up a decent fight though."

"Ah," said the man behind the desk, "I see. Kill her."

"Yes sir," said Carter, "I'll arrange for her execution."

* * *

 _Alright guys, we will be reaching the facility in thirty minutes. Get locked and Loaded, 'cause we're going in._

All around Johnny, the insurgents prepared for battle. He had never been in such a crowd before. A crowd ready and willing to die for a cause he and Mavis started.

 _Don't worry, they don't have anti-aircraft guns. They probably think that we're some commercial airplane_

"Thanks George." grumbled Gerschiv.

The insurgents locked and loaded their guns, strapped in grenades, and put on their camo jackets. In the front, a man older than George took the control, and George came to the back, with the rest of the insurgents. For a soldier, he looked quite old, with his greying mustache, but he strapped on two grenades and loaded his gun.

"I served active duty in Afghanistan for sixteen years guys," he said, noticing the looks some people were giving him, "I know what I'm doing."

The private jet eventually landed on a ridge half a mile away from the facility. There, the troops went out, twenty following Johnny and the rest following Gerschiv. The two groups made their way down the ridge, until they spotted the facility in the distance. It sure did look like a prison. The snow created icicles that glistened even from their distance. Johnny was already getting cold. Luckily for them, the forest was there to keep them hidden.

"Come on," he said, "Let's keep moving."

The group of about 50 insurgents made their way over, until they were only about two hundred meters away from the facility, still concealed within the treeline.

Gerschiv took out his sniper. It was a lethal weapon, able to hit anything within a mile. Two hundred meters should be easy. It came with a suppressor, to hide the noise so it didn't give their location.

Johnny looked at the exterior of the facility. He counted five, six, seven, eight guards wandering outside.

Gerschiv used his sniper to quickly kill three of them. The other 5 were all in sight of each other, so he quickly signalled his group to get on the facility.

Gerschiv's group of thirty troops silently got onto the exterior of the facility, climbing the cold metal ladders to the top. One of the guards was lucky enough to notice them.

Instantly, gunfire broke out. The group of thirty quickly overwhelming the five guards, with two casualties on the insurgent side.

Johnny's group moved in on the bottom doors, prying the rusty doors open easily with a crowbar. Unfortunately for the people who ran the facility, they did not seem to be expecting an attack from anyone.

Johnny led the way, quickly taking down a guard without even firing his gun, instead deciding to clobber the guard with the butt of his shotgun.

Johnny followed the signs to where it said, "Holding Facility", which he took as meaning, "Prison".

Suddenly, upstairs, there was a loud explosion and yelling. Gerschiv seemed to be meeting some resistance.

Johnny signaled for his men to stay down. He silently crept to the end of the hallway, where there was a turn. When he turned around, he saw a group of three guards, pointing their guns at...Mavis.

Johnny's vision turned sharp the moment his eyes laid on her. She was the reason he was here. Without even signaling to his men, he crept out from behind the corner and fired his shotgun, killing two of the men, then clobbered the last one in the face.

When Johnny tried to get near Mavis, however, she backed away, "Don't get near me!"

Johnny paused, "Mavis? It's me. It's me, Johnny."

Mavis began to rock back and forth, and tears began forming in her eyes, "I've told you what you've wanted to hear," she cried, "Leave me alone!"

Johnny ran up to Mavis and kissed her. This seemed to clear her mind.

"Johnny…?" she asked, her eyes widening.

Before she could say anything else, however, gunfire began to crackle behind them. Johnny's men began firing at something that Johnny couldn't see thanks to the fact that he was on the wrong end of the corner.

"Listen, Mavis, I'm here to get you outta here, come on." said Johnny urgently, helping Mavis up.

Mavis stared at him, "You're not….an illusion?"

Johnny stared at her, a combination of anger and sorrow brewing inside of him. What have they done to Mavis?

"Mavis, I'm real. This is real. Come on, you have to trust me." said Johnny, "Here." he handed Mavis an AK-47, "Come on!"

Mavis shakily ran after Johnny, where Johnny's men had cleared out the guards who tried to stop them.

As their group ran out of the facility, they met Gerschiv, who was being dragged by two of his men out of the facility, "Damn guards managed to hit my legs," he roared, firing his sniper back at the enemy troops, "I see you got your girl there, come on!" he yelled at Johnny.

As they began to retreat into the forest, the facility's troops took chase, coming out of the facility in droves, firing at their backs.

In what seemed like fifteen furious minutes, Johnny and Gerschiv, along with their men and Mavis, managed to get onto the private jet.

The old man at the pilot seat flipped a few switches, and the Jet's engines whirred to life, flying them away from the facility.

* * *

When they reached the caves, Johnny was worried. True, the operation had been successful, but Mavis didn't seem right. She didn't talk, she just stared at the ground, and sometimes she looked as if she was about to cry.

Johnny and Mavis both walked into their cave room, after the celebrations. That was when Johnny walked over to Mavis, "Mav, what did they do to you in the facility?"

Mavis sat down on the bed, shaking, "They...They wanted me to renounce my family."

Johnny stared, "What, why? What good does that do them?"

"T-they probably n-needed it to cr-create their weapons," said Mavis, "They needed m-magic, so they were f-following the instructions of a b-book they found in Moscow."

Mavis began to cry, rocking back and forth on the bed, "It's all my fault. I should've known...I should've known…"

Johnny patted her on the back, "Should've known what?" he asked softly.

"T-they used illusions...of y-you and dad t-to coax me into s-saying it," she cried, "I t-thought you were being t-tortured..."

Mavis then hugged Johnny, this time not letting go, "I promise you," said Johnny, "We're never, ever, going to be separated again."

Mavis continued crying, then broke the hug, "But now they have the weapon, and it's all my fault." she said, shaking.

"Mavey, it's not your fault, they tortured you into it." said Johnny.

"But I gave in!" she cried, "If only I had resisted for a longer time-"

"Hey," Johnny kissed her, "You couldn't have resisted any longer. If you could've done that, then you would have. I know that for a fact."

Mavis stared at the ground, tear streaks still on her face, "Johnny, do you love me?"

"Of course I do, what type of question is that?" asked Johnny.

"In the facility, th-they made an illusion of you a-and you said you d-didn't love me a-anymore."

Johnny immediately felt anger rising up in him, "Listen, Mav, I'll love you, no matter what. You're literally all I have."

Mavis smiled weakly, "Thanks, Johnny…"

She fell asleep, right there in Johnny's arms.

Johnny tucked Mavis into the bed, pulling the sheets over her. Something told him that she would need to sleep for a long time before she could get her energy back.

* * *

"They WHAT?" roared the man behind the desk.

Carter was by now positively shaking, "The insurgents infiltrated the base, raided our weapons storage and, according to footage from the cameras, also rescued Miss Dracula.

"Mmmm…" the man behind the desk pondered for some time, "I guess we lose nothing but a facility. We still have the proper ingredients for our weapon."

Carter nodded, "Yes we do, sir." he said.

"Redistribute our troops equally amongst all our facilities. We'll let them make the first move this time." said the man behind the desk.

Carter saluted, "As you wish."

* * *

 _Two days later…_

Johnny had just gotten back from combat training with the other insurgents. Those guys could really punch. He ran back to his room, as he always did after pretty much every activity in the cave, and when he opened the door, he grinned.

"Mavis! You're finally up!" yelled Johnny, running over to her and kissing her.

Mavis smiled, "Yeah, how long was I asleep?"

Johnny checked the tally marks that he had created on the wall, "About...fifty two hours and forty five minutes."

"I was asleep for two days?"

"Pretty much, yeah." said Johnny.

Mavis hesitated, "Where did you sleep then?" she asked. The bed was only large enough for one person.

Johnny shrugged, "I slept on the ground. I didn't want to-"

Mavis tackled him with a hug, "You are literally the best husband ever." Mavis said, kissing him.

Johnny laughed nervously, "Someone got their strength back."

"Yeah, that facility had some weird stuff that prevented me from using my powers." said Mavis. She tried to get back up, but winced slightly. Johnny noticed.

"Woah Mavis, you okay?" asked Johnny.

"I'm fine...It's just, ow." Mavis rubbed her back.

"Let me see," said Johnny. He lifted up Mavis's shirt until he saw all the scars on her back. There were probably more than a hundred. "Mavis...how did you take all of this?"

Mavis shrugged, "Vampires have regenerative flesh, so it should be fine."

Johnny didn't like it, but there wasn't anything he could do about it.

* * *

"Sir!" Carter Wilson turned around as one of his intel officers ran up to him, "Sir, we have evidence that the insurgents are hiding in the French Alps, we have their exact location."

Carter Wilson smiled, "Are they vulnerable?"

"They're hiding in the mountains, so they do have a means of protection. However, we believe that our Tomahawk S-2 missiles should be able to punch through it."

Carter Wilson nodded, "Launch the missiles immediately, I will inform my superior of our discovery."

The officer nodded, "Yes sir, and should I also deploy troops?"

Carter Wilson hesitated, remembering his boss's order to keep all his troops at the facilities, "Send the reserves only."

"Yes sir."

A few moments later, six Tomahawk S-2 missiles were launched at the cave base in the French Alps, and 300 troops were silently taking position around the it.

* * *

Training was too easy for Mavis. She punched every single opponent she came across so hard it knocked them out with one hit. Whenever someone tried to charge her she simply turned to mist. The only person she wasn't willing to hit was Johnny.

The training room was a large, circular stone cave room that George and the others had turned into an arena. It was meant for training, but most people called it "the arena".

"Damn girl, you got some fists." said Gerschiv, right after recovering from a hit that sent him flying twenty feet back into the wall.

Mavis laughed, actually enjoying herself, "It's vampire strength," she said, "no worries."

After training, Johnny confronted George, telling him about how Mavis had given the government the last ingredient to the weapon that they were developing under torture.

George sighed, "Then, we must be ready when they launch it. I'm afraid that I don't have any idea what the weapon is specifically, only that it will cause devastation to everything in the world."

"Then we've gotta move fast!" said Johnny urgently, "Where are they developing this weapon?"

"According to my intel, it can be in either Moscow, Omsk (Siberia), or St. Kilda, an isolated island in the mid-atlantic." said George.

"Well, we can go to one of them, get the leader, and ask him where the main base is, and if it is the main facility, then great." said Johnny.

"Patience," said George calmly, "We will take action, just not right now."

"Why not?" asked Johnny, "What's stopping us?"

George shrugged, "It's tradition amongst these insurgents to take a 3-day break off after an operation, and I can't say I blame them. We lost some good men at the facility."

Johnny sighed, "Fine, but tomorrow, we _better_ make progress."

George smiled, "Of course, Johnny."


	14. Betrayed

Mavis woke up to a weird noise. She knew it was far off in the distance, but she had only heard it once before…

Where did she hear this noise before? It sounded like a bunch of rumbling.

Then she remembered. It was the sound of a rocket. An explosive rocket.

Mavis turned around and shook Johnny, who she had insisted sleep on the bed with her that night, "Johnny...Johnny wake up."

Johnny's eyes fluttered open, "Wha…? Mav?"

Mavis spoke quickly and urgently, "I hear a rocket, get your clothes on."

Johnny's face immediately became serious. He didn't wait for any more explanations. He jumped up and pulled on his pants. Right as he threw on his jacket, he heard the first explosion.

 _BOOM_

The explosion came from above them, shaking the ceiling and causing dust to fall. Johnny grabbed the assault shotgun and threw Mavis an AK-47, "Come on." he said.

The two of them ran through the catacomb of tunnels until they reached the main entrance. There, they saw a massacre.

Bodies were strewn about everywhere, the entire entrance was in flames. Huge supporting beams had fallen.

At the mouth of the cave, dozens of soldiers were lined up, shooting at the survivors. Several insurgents were at the back of the room, firing their guns and trying desperately to survive.

 _BOOM_

The second missile struck, and the entire entrance cave collapsed. Mavis screamed, and Johnny quickly grabbed her arm, leading her through another less known exit that George had shown him earlier.

After running for a few minutes, Johnny met a dead end. Or so it seemed like a dead end. The wall was actually just an unstable rock that George had stationed there when he had built the place.

Johnny pushed the rock, and it opened up, revealing the other side of the mountain. Quickly, Mavis and Johnny both ran out, just as another missile struck.

 _BOOM_

This time, Johnny heard the screams of the insurgents as the cave completely collapsed. Then he heard a whisper. " _Johnny_!"

Johnny turned around, pointing his gun at...Gerschiv. Gerschiv put his hands up, "Come on, we went through the hangar bay, but the jet's destroyed."

Behind Gerschiv, a dozen frightened looking insurgents were staring at the cave as if it were doomsday.

"Do you know where George is?" asked Mavis, looking worried.

Gerschiv shrugged, "I haven't seen him. I assume that he's either somewhere in the cave suffocating or already dead."

Mavis winced at this comment, it reminded her of the facility she was held in, "Well, lets get moving, there's nothing better we can do-"

"Look out!" yelled one of the insurgents. Suddenly, bullets began spraying in all directions. "They have night vision goggles!" yelled Johnny, as he hid behind a tree and let loose with his shotgun.

Mavis abandoned her AK-47, using telekinesis to choke the enemy troops. Whenever Johnny saw a random soldier get his neck snapped, he knew Mavis was there.

All around Johnny, the insurgents were being cut down. Gerschiv had gotten a bullet wound to the leg but was still in the fight, shooting his sniper with deadly efficiency. But it wasn't enough.

"Grenade!" yelled Mavis, and Johnny saw a grenade land right next to him. Before it could explode, he grabbed it and threw it back. There was an explosion and a scream, and Johnny knew that he had hit someone.

"We got to retreat!" yelled Gerschiv, "Yoshi, smoke!"

Yoshi, the Japanese insurgent, threw a smoke grenade that sent a thick white screen of smoke drifting across the side of the mountain. Mavis telekinetically dragged Gerschiv on the ground. Behind them, Yoshi threw three more smoke grenades before running back to them, but was shot in the back. He took out his entire belt of grenades and threw it at the enemy line, which was now hidden in smoke. There was a loud _BOOM_ , and a flash of light, then a brief period of silence before the gunfire broke out again.

Gerschiv gritted his teeth, "Come on, let's keep moving!" he yelled. By now, the smoke had grown so thick that Mavis couldn't even see through the smoke with her extra-sensory perception.

As the small group of insurgents made their way down the side of the rocky mountain, Gerschiv did a head count. There were only six of them left. Fletcher, Gerschiv, Johnny, Mavis, and two other insurgents.

The group finally made it all the way down, where they were met with-

"George." spat Gerschiv.

George stood there, pointing a gun at them. Behind him, at least forty more soldiers pointed their guns at them.

George sighed, "I'm sorry Gerschiv, but I have a job to do. Surrender now."

Gerschiv glared at George, but set his weapons down. Everyone set their weapons down. Everyone except-

"Johnny, you too." said George, training his gun on him.

Johnny sighed and dropped his weapon, he already knew how he and Mavis would get out of this one. Behind their backs, Mavis and Johnny both grabbed each other's hands.

"Good," said George, "Now that we are all settled...soldiers, shoot them."

Before the soldiers could even point their guns at them, however, Mavis turned into a bat, carrying Johnny into the air, who threw his last two grenades back at the enemy soldiers.

"Shoot them!" yelled George, but it was too late. The grenades exploded right in front of George, knocking him back, and probably injured a few more soldiers. On the ground, Johnny saw Gerschiv and the rest of the insurgents get shot.

Mavis and Johnny flew several miles, until finally, Mavis heard the sound of a jet engine, several miles away, with her extra-sensory perception. Quickly, Mavis dropped Johnny off in the middle of the forest and turned back to vampire form. The two of them quickly hid themselves by jumping onto the ground as an F-18 flew right over them.

That night, Mavis and Johnny found an old hut, probably built by natives and abandoned, that they took shelter in. After Mavis finished cleaning out the entire area, They took piles of pine needles and used it as a mattress, which, quite surprisingly, didn't feel all that bad.

"So...what now?" asked Mavis that night, as they lay close to each other on the pine needles.

"George told me that they're building the weapons in either Moscow, St. Kilda, or Omsk." said Johnny, "So we should go there."

"But George wasn't on our side, he was probably trying to trick you." said Mavis

"Yes well...we know that Moscow is an area of importance, so we should go there first." said Johnny.

Mavis thought for a moment, "Sure...but how?"

Johnny hesitated, "We could go back to the mountain...I mean, it's probably under complete lockdown right now, so there should be plenty of vehicles that we can 'borrow'."

Mavis frowned, "But then we risk getting spotted and then captured and…" she stopped talking, remembering the facility she was held in.

Johnny kissed Mavis, "We won't get spotted, besides, what choice do we have?" he asked, "There're no settlements within thirty miles of this place, it's not as if we can just go to an airport."

Mavis nodded, "Okay...as long as I'm with you..."

That night, Johnny took first watch and let Mavis sleep. He wasn't tired at all that night, having another panther that Mavis strangled for dinner, but was alert. Every time a twig snapped, he jumped. Every time he saw a squirrel running up a tree, he also saw a soldier pointing a gun at him. When he wasn't on the lookout, he was wondering what would happen the next day, and whether or not they would be lucky enough to actually pull off a vehicle theft without being noticed.

* * *

"So…." hissed the man behind the desk, "The insurgents are dead?"

"Yes," replied George, not looking up, his face scarred from Johnny's grenade, "But Mavis and Johnny both escaped."

The man behind the desk growled, "Why is it that whenever I ask someone to do something, they always perform it perfectly...until it comes to those two pesky worms?"

George replied swiftly, "They are a resourceful pair, quick on their feet."

"Hmmm…" the man behind the desk nodded, "Is our development facility in St. Kilda protected?"

"Yes sir, we doubled the guards and doubled the security measures just yesterday." replied George, "Sir, why do you want to kill Mavis and Johnny so much? Don't we already have the ingredients?"

The man behind the desk looked at him, "And why do you ask, George? The reason is simple. Those two worms know too much, have seen too much. If they somehow manage to convince the public of what they've seen, then all we have worked for will be doomed."

George shivered from the cold, "But, perhaps, we should take caution, and not be too hasty with our-"

"Why do you care so much about Mavis and Johnny, mmm? Perhaps you feel as if your loyalties are dwindling after your little...masquerade with the insurgents?"

George paled, "No, of course not sir. I will carry out your orders immediately."

"Good, I expect results, George."


	15. Plane Thief

The next morning, Mavis woke up, gasping. She was having another stupid nightmare about the facility. Mavis glanced at her watch. It was 5:53 am. She dragged herself up into a sitting position. Johnny was still sleeping silently next to her on the pine needles, and there was a squirrel clambering on the windowsill.

Mavis grabbed the squirrel telekinetically and killed it before it could even react. She smiled lightly. Her telekinesis was become faster and stronger. Maybe it was all this running and stress that was forcing her to become stronger.

As Mavis began preparing a smokeless fire outside, Johnny also woke up. "Ugh…" Johnny dragged himself up, flicking a beetle off his nose. "Mav, you need help with that fire?"

Mavis shook her head, "I'm fine." she telekinetically grabbed a bunch of pine needles and set them on fire, using a stick to create friction, that turned to embers.

Mavis grabbed the dead squirrel and began rotating it over the fire, while also humming "Suffer suffer scream in pain" (Hotel Transylvania 2 Reference).

A few minutes later, Mavis had killed half a dozen more squirrels and were cooking those as well. Squirrel meat tasted surprisingly good. Kind of like lamb actually.

Mavis swallowed squirrel after squirrel, not even chewing. They were meager, compared to the food that they had in the cave.

"Johnny, how are we going to get back to the mountain?" asked Mavis after a while.

"You can fly us in as a bat, then drop us off a mile out, then we can hike in so nobody sees us." replied Johnny confidently.

Mavis knew that Johnny was also uncertain, but she didn't have a better plan to go with. "Alright, lets just try not to get killed then."

Johnny tore off a squirrel leg and ate some of it, "Well, if you think about it, we have done things much riskier than stealing a vehicle. I mean, we should be fine."

Mavis nodded, "I hope you're right."

 _One hour later…_

Mavis was carrying Johnny over the forest now. She was going at a pace she felt would leave enough energy at the end to fight, but wasn't too slow. Mavis dropped them off as soon as she heard helicopter blades.

"You sure you heard them?" asked Johnny, as they hiked towards the mountains.

"Absolutely sure." said Mavis, who was a few meters ahead of Johnny thanks to her vampire strength.

As the two of them walked closer and closer to the mountain, they saw their first soldier. He was sitting cross legged, eating breakfast. His gun was a few feet away, not even loaded.

Mavis jumped out, scaring the crap out of him, but seemed to soften as the soldier screamed, "Please don't kill me, please!" Mavis looked at him right in the eyes, "Go to sleep." she said softly. The soldier slumped over, asleep.

Johnny looked at the sleeping soldier, and suddenly an idea came to him. It was stupid, but it might just work out. "Mav, wait, I think this uniform fits me." Johnny called out.

Mavis looked back at him. "You gotta be kidding me." she said.

 _Two minutes later_

"Well, how do I look?" asked Johnny, coming out from behind the bushes where he was changing.

Mavis stared at him. He was wearing a camouflage jacket with a bulletproof helmet on, carrying a gun that looked too big for him, and wearing pants that looked _way_ too big for him.

Mavis rolled her eyes, "You look awful."

Johnny grinned, "Come on, it can't be that bad, I even got a new gun. And now it's gonna be easier to steal a vehicle."

Well, that was a point, Mavis thought as she continued walking forward.

As they neared the treeline, Johnny looked around. There were soldiers scattered here and there. "Come on, lets get to the main road." he whispered to Mavis, who had transformed into a bat to hide herself.

Johnny walked casually through the group of soldiers, saluting at a few, and managed to get back onto the main road, where they saw...alot of vehicles.

Well, that was a good thing. But the bad thing was that there were also at least a hundred more soldiers walking around.

"I don't care if your men have been searching all night, I need some new leads!" Johnny heard someone yell into a phone.

Mavis hid herself by diving into Johnny's pocket, where she poked her head out cautiously from time to time.

The vehicles were spread out along a large chain, some of them on the side of the road and some of them on the road. Most of the soldiers were sitting down, eating breakfast, or talking to each other.

Johnny went straight for the nearest humvee, but was stopped by another soldier.

"Sorry, but I'm under orders to prevent anyone from accessing these humvees. Commander doesn't want that vampire escaping."

Johnny's response was swift and clear, "I wasn't going to take the humvee actually, Commander wanted to see you, told me to stand guard while you went."

The soldier looked at him in the eye, "Alright, I'll get going." he said, then ran off towards the commander, who seemed to be a woman who was currently ordering around a bunch of soldiers.

As soon as the soldier had his back turned, Johnny ran over to the humvee and opened its door, sliding into the driver's seat. Behind him, Mavis turned back to vampire form in the passenger's seat, watching the soldiers anxiously. Some of them were staring at Johnny weirdly, but they didn't do anything. They probably thought that Johnny was just on some special case scenario.

That was, until there was a yell from behind the humvee, "STOP THAT VEHICLE!"

Johnny didn't wait any farther than that, he hit the gas pedal hard, causing the humvee's tires to screech. Mavis telekinetically shoved all the other vehicles that were in their way to the side. Gunshots flew in the air, hitting the humvee, but luckily the humvee was heavily armored, so no bullets went through.

Johnny sped down the road, ignoring the sparks that were flying off the armor of the humvee. In a few short seconds, the soldiers were far behind Johnny and Mavis. Johnny remembered what he had said yesterday. _We won't get spotted_. He sighed. _Well, sometimes it's just that difficult._ He thought to himself.

As the humvee rumbled down the road, Johnny's memory kicked in, telling him how to get back to the city of Galena. As he neared the city, he began to slow down the vehicle to make it seem more innocent. As he passed the city entrance, he grinned. The reinforcements that the soldiers back at the road inevitably called clearly didn't make it on time.

Johnny spotted a parking lot filled with parked humvees and parked his humvee there as well. "Come on," he said urgently to Mavis, "We gotta get moving."

Mavis and Johnny ran over to the airport, where Mavis mind controlled the front desk lady to give them direct flight tickets to Moscow. They then mind wiped at least twenty TSA agents to skip the security check, and got settled at the gate.

At first, nothing much happened apart from the two of them being unusually tense and alert, before dozens of soldiers started pushing their way through the security check area, yelling orders and checking the gates.

Mavis looked out the floor-to-ceiling windows that were in the gate, and saw that the plane they were supposed to board was already out there. "I have an idea." she suddenly said.

Mavis grabbed Johnny and dragged him over to the ticket lady in front of the jet bridge, and handed over the tickets. The lady stared at them, "Um, we aren't-"

"You _are_ accepting _us_ as passengers right now." said Mavis, her eyes glowing red. The lady's eyes fogged up, then cleared, "Thank you." she said, scanning the ticket and handing them back, "Have a nice flight.".

Johnny and Mavis ran down the jet bridge, Johnny taking out his new military assault rifle and pointing it at the plane attendant to make her not say anything. Behind him, Mavis shut the plane door using telekinesis, and walked over to the cockpit, where the pilot and co-pilot were.

"Bring us to Moscow." she said to the pilot and co-pilot, her eyes glowing red. The pilot and co-pilot both nodded dreamily, "Bring...Moscow…" they murmured.

A few seconds later, the plane had disconnected from the jet bridge and was moving out. On the communications channel, Johnny could hear the people at the communications tower yelling at the pilots, "You aren't cleared for takeoff, return to your designated position at-"

The pilot turned off communications and continued, humming something.

Mavis turned to Johnny, "What if they shoot down the plane like last time?" she asked.

Johnny shrugged, "I don't think they will, and if they do, then we'll do what we did last time." he said.

"From my memory, what we did last time involved me getting a bullet wound in the stomach." said Mavis innocently.

Johnny smiled grudgingly, then asked the pilot, "What's generally the consequence of taking off without clearance?"

The pilot, not even looking back, replied, "Generally the airport that it took off from would contact all other airports, who would then send the authorities to wait for the pilots when the plane lands."

Johnny looked back at Mavis, "See, we aren't gonna get shot down." he said, "Pilot, how long until we reach Moscow?"

"Six hours and 52 minutes." said the pilot, flipping some switches.

The plane attendants were watching Mavis and Johnny with fear, and Johnny sighed, "Augh, get me something warm to eat." he said.

The plane attendants all nodded fervently, looking at Johnny's gun, which although it wasn't being pointed at them, was still scary.

In a few minutes, Johnny and Mavis were both wolfing down Chicken noodle soup, rosemary bread, and plates of cheese, making up for the calories lost on the days which they had nothing to eat but panthers and squirrels.

Johnny kept an eye on the plane attendants, making sure that they didn't try to phone in for help, while Mavis kept an eye and ear out for fighter jets. She didn't hear any.

On the plane, Mavis and Johnny didn't sleep. They paced around, thinking about what they would do when they reached Moscow.

"So how are we gonna find their research facility?" asked Mavis

"Well...since this plane took off without clearance, there's gonna be plenty of police officers waiting at the gate, so maybe they know something about the facility." said Johnny, scratching the back of his head.

"And if they don't?" asked Mavis.

"Then we would have to figure it out on our own, which would be annoying." said Johnny, as if just realising this.

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Of course it will be."

* * *

"So...the vampire and her little pet are en route to Moscow?" asked the man behind the desk.

Carter Wilson nodded, "Yes, we have probes tracking it as we speak. Should I deploy our reserves at Moscow to stop them when they land?"

"Yes, do that. We must not underestimate the threat these two pose to our work." said the man behind the desk, "Is the weapon near completion?"

"Our scientists say that they just need two more days, and they'll have it complete." said Carter.

"Good. Make sure the facility at St. Kilda is secure, I will be making a personal visit in a week." said the man behind the desk.

Carter nodded, "As you wish, sir."

* * *

As the plane flew over the border of Russia, Johnny and Mavis looked out the window. Beneath them, ice and snow was all that existed, covering the landscape with a white blanket.

"Pilot, how much longer?" asked Johnny.

"Two hours left, sir." said the pilot.

Johnny walked over to Mavis, who had sat down on one of the first-class seats. "How're you feeling Mav?"

Mavis smiled slightly, "We're flying towards a military outpost at 575 miles per hour, and now you ask me if I'm fine?"

Johnny grinned, "Well, I just wanted to check on the scars on your back."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "It's fine Johnny, It's honestly-"

"You always say it's fine." grumbled Johnny, as he lifted the back of Mavis's shirt, and checked on the scars. Sure enough, they had faded alot since he last saw them, but were still very visible.

Mavis suddenly gasped and leaned forward, her eyes temporarily blanking out.

"Mavis!" Johnny quickly wrapped his arms around Mavis to prevent her from falling, and put her back onto the chair. Mavis's eyes came back to life. "Wha-" she mumbled.

"Mav, you just blanked out, what the hell was that?" asked Johnny, looking worried.

"It's nothing, just some stupid visions," said Mavis, "of the facility." she finished, as she saw Johnny's look of confusion.

"Oh." said Johnny, "you should still sit down though, you look tired."

Mavis didn't argue this time. She relaxed on the first class chair for a second, then asked one of the plane attendants respectfully for a glass of beet juice.

"Mav, are you sure you're okay? With the visions?" asked Johnny, "You seem to be...getting them alot."

This was the truth. Although Johnny had never seen Mavis like this while she was awake, she had been mumbling in her sleep alot lately.

Mavis sighed, "Every second we wait is another second closer to the feds releasing a chemical weapon into the world. There's no time to rest."

Johnny didn't argue against that comment.

"Come on, just get some sleep. I'll keep watch over the plane attendants." he said, glaring at the plane attendants, who kept their distance.

Mavis nodded, "Thanks, Johnny…"

With that, she fell asleep.

* * *

 **yea sorry about the zero-action thingy that's going on, next chapter will be cool i hope**


	16. Infiltration

"Mavis...Mavis, get up."

"Ugh…."

Mavis opened her eyes. Johnny was standing over her, "We're descending over Moscow right now." he said, "You okay?"

Mavis nodded, "Yeah I'm fine, how much longer until we land?"

"About fifteen minutes. Come on, we have to get ready, and I also need your help with the flight attendants."

Mavis got up, stumbling a little first, but balancing herself out, "What about the flight attendants?"

"I say we should put them to sleep first. What if the feds know we're going to Moscow, and they're waiting for us? The flight attendants will just get in the way." said Johnny.

The flight attendants themselves were all listening to every word Johnny was saying, looking as if they were going to be killed.

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Don't worry, I won't kill you. We mean it quite literally when we say 'sleep'. You'll be back up in no time."

With that, Mavis snapped her fingers, and said, "Sleep."

All the flight attendants collapsed on the ground, snoring.

"Sir, we'll be landing in Moscow in ten minutes." said the pilot from the cockpit, "And also, the communications tower in the airport is trying to reach us. Should we respond?"

Johnny shook his head, "No, ignore the tower, just get us on the ground."

"What if the feds are waiting for us though? What do we do then?" asked Mavis.

"When the plane first lands, we'll hide in the back, so if the feds are waiting, then we can escape through the emergency exits." replied Johnny matter-of-factly.

Mavis sighed, another emergency exit-based plan.

As Johnny looked out the window, he saw Moscow. Most of the buildings were low-standing, with some smokestacks dotted here and there, trailing white smoke into the sky. In the center, a small cluster of taller buildings stood high above the rest. The entire thing was coated in a thick sheet of ice and snow.

Mavis was also staring out the window. She had seen alot of cities by now, so she wasn't too blown away, but Moscow was still beautiful.

As they slowly began to descend, Johnny felt the plane shake a little. It must be quite windy outside.

When the plane landed, Johnny immediately noticed a truck park right in front of the plane. The pilot stopped the plane, "What the hell is this guy playing at?" he asked.

A voice came out of an intercom that must've been attached to the truck, "This plane is reported to have left without clearance in an airport located in Galena, France. You are to follow this truck, and failure to do so will result in potential penalties." The man had a russian accent.

The truck began to slowly drive, and the pilots followed.

Mavis shifted next to Johnny, "I could tell them to just not follow him." said Johnny.

Mavis shook her head, "Listen, if we do that, these pilots will probably lose their jobs and go to prison. We got them in enough crap for the rest of their lives."

Johnny didn't say anything, but nodded. He knew what it felt like when assholes decided to turn your life upside down.

As they followed the truck, the plane rounded a corner, where they found a separate building with a single jet bridge on it. As the plane was moving into position, Johnny glanced out the window at the building. Lucky for him, there was floor-to-ceiling glass in the building, and he was able to see right through it, at the fifty armed soldiers waiting for them at the other end of the jet bridge.

Johnny turned to Mavis, who also saw it.

"We need to get outta here." whispered Mavis.

Johnny ran to the emergency exits as Mavis erased the pilots' memories so they wouldn't remember them, then Mavis ran over to Johnny.

"The soldiers speak fluent english," said Mavis, "I think they're American."

Johnny paused. If the soldiers were American, then they must've came directly from the facility. That means that if they got hold of one and interrogated him…

"Wait, no, scrap the plan about escaping through the emergency exits." said Johnny.

Mavis stared, "What?"

"Those soldiers came from the facility, if they truly do speak american-accented english, which means that if we get hold of one of them, we can get the location of the facility." said Johnny excitedly, "We need to fight."

Mavis thought for a moment. The plan did sound alright...except for the fighting part...but they always needed to fight anyways.

"What if they aren't though?" asked Mavis, "What if they're just russians who speak fluent english?"

"Well...If they're Russian, maybe they also know something about the facility?" said Johnny uncertainly.

"Alright fine." Said Mavis, right as the jet bridge fully connected.

Johnny and Mavis both ducked behind the storage area in the back of the plane right as the doors opened. Twenty soldiers filed through, armed with assault rifles and grenades. They didn't look like the people who would be waiting for unruly pilots.

Mavis heard one of them say, "Spread out, they're here somewhere."

Johnny glanced at Mavis, who mouthed back to him, _They're coming our way._

Johnny heard footsteps coming towards him, and right before those footsteps reached the storage area, Mavis jumped out and grabbed the soldier, punching him once across the face, knocking him out cold.

"What was that?" Johnny heard one of the men ask. Mavis's punch did make a loud noise.

Mavis quickly grabbed the body of the soldier and dragged him to where he was out of view from the main aisle, then whispered to Johnny, "Light it up, we have what we need."

Johnny grabbed his gun and pointed it at the soldiers who were in the plane. There were a dozen spread out pretty well in the plane, searching the seats, but nobody was in the back. Johnny opened fire, killing three soldiers straight off the bat before they managed to all get behind cover.

"Mavis, hurry up!" yelled Johnny, as he hid back behind the wall and reloaded his gun. A grenade landed right next to him, which Mavis managed to telekinetically hurl away, then turned back to the unconscious soldier, trying to get him to wake up.

Mavis yelled in frustration, unable to get the soldier to wake up. She yelled back to Johnny, "Let's get out of here, I can carry the dude!"

With that, she forced open the emergency exits and jumped out, telekinetically carrying the soldier with her. Behind her, Johnny also jumped out, and the two of them ran behind one of those transit buses that brought the passengers to the terminal.

Somewhere in that run, the soldier seemed to have regained consciousness, and was struggling against the telekinesis. Mavis, while telekinetically holding him, used her vampire powers, "Where is the weapons development facility in this city?"

The soldier gasped, clearly trying to fight the hypnosis, "Its….It's in….It's at 55.81 37.32…" He gasped, clearly defeated.

Mavis looked confused, "What did those numbers mean?" she asked.

Johnny, who was firing his gun at the enemy soldiers, yelled back, "They're coordinates, Mavis, I need some backup here!"

Mavis quickly turned to mist and flew out from behind the bus. In a few short seconds, she rematerialized behind it again, the soldiers who were firing at the two of them were dead.

The two of them, mainly Mavis, who was dragging Johnny, ran over to the airport taxi stop, where she walked right in front of a taxi, smashed the window, and threw the driver out. "Come on!" she yelled, sliding into the driver's seat.

Johnny slid in at the shotgun seat, watching the rest of the terminal. Sure enough, a dozen soldiers were making their way out of the airport at that moment, looking for them.

Mavis hit the gas pedal, and the two of them sped off. Behind them, Johnny heard the soldiers yelling into walkie-talkies, probably calling for reinforcements.

Johnny grabbed the GPS that was installed in the taxi and asked, "What were the coordinates?"

Mavis, keeping her eyes on the road, replied, "55.81, 37.32."

Johnny punched in the coordinates, and the GPS immediately showed a route to get there. "Follow this." he said, putting the GPS right in front of her.

Mavis followed the GPS, winding through the freezing streets of Moscow. Now that they were temporarily not being shot at, Johnny noticed how freezing it actually was. His hands were already blue from being outside so long. Johnny opened the glovebox, looking for anything that could help keep him warm, and found a hand warmer inside.

As Johnny was busying himself with warming his hands, Mavis was closely following the GPS. As they neared the edge of the city, however, Mavis muttered, "Uh oh."

"What?" asked Johnny, looking up.

In front of them, a line of police cars blocked the road, the russian police pointing their weapons at the taxi. "This'll be easy." said Mavis. Before they even got within a hundred meters of the barricade, Mavis waved her hands and forced the cars out of the way. They sped right through without even slowing down.

* * *

"Sir, you must leave. As we speak, the vampire and her human accomplice are approaching the facility!" said Carter hurriedly.

The man behind the desk grimaced, "I understand that, Carter! Stop pestering me. I will leave."

Carter sighed with relief, "Good, because-"

"Sir! The terrorists have broken through the barricade, they're not slowing down!" yelled a soldier, running into the room.

Carter growled, "Ready our troops and defensive measures, and prepare the jet."

The soldier saluted, "Yes sir!"

* * *

Mavis finally stopped the car.

"Why did you do that?" asked Johnny.

"'Cause the GPS says that the location is off the road a little from here." said Mavis. At the current moment, they looked as if they were in the Moscow Suburbs. Homes were scattered here and there, but it was pretty quiet.

Johnny and Mavis got out, Johnny rubbing the hand warmer against his hands, and Mavis clutching the GPS. They walked a little, until finally, Mavis stopped. "Look." she said.

Johnny looked, and immediately also said, "Woah."

The facility was hidden quite well in the woods to the side of the suburbs. It was tall, with massive thick blast doors and walkways that criss crossed the top of it, but the tall trees and thick forestry covered it up well.

Mavis walked straight up the wall of the facility, using telekinesis to float Johnny up as well. When the two of them made it to the top, Johnny turned around and was greeted by a dozen soldiers who were lined up, pointing their guns at him. He froze. In the center of that line of soldiers, was George.

George's face was scarred, chunks of it being blown off by Johnny's grenades. One of his eyes had an eyepatch on it. George sighed.

"I'm afraid that I have no choice but to kill you," he said, "So I'll make this quick. Soldiers, OPEN FIRE!"

Johnny ducked out of the way, hiding behind one of the towers that jutted from the top of the facility. Mavis had turned to mist, telekinetically chucking soldiers off the edge of the facility. When she tried to get George, however, George also ducked behind a tower to avoid the telekinesis.

Johnny took out his gun, opening fire on the enemy troops, while Mavis strangled any soldiers left out in the open, then rematerialized with Johnny behind his tower, gasping.

"You okay?!" yelled Johnny, still firing his gun. "Yeah, just tired after all that telekinesis." said Mavis.

Johnny suddenly spotted soldiers coming out of a hatch in the ground, supporting George and his men, "They're coming from that hatch over there," he yelled pointing, "We have to get there!"

Mavis also saw it and nodded, "Do you have any grenades?" she asked.

"Nope, I used it all when we escaped in Galena." replied Johnny, reloading his weapon.

Mavis glanced over from behind the wall and had an idea. She concentrated, trying to detonate the grenades that were strapped to the soldier's belts. At first nothing happened, then the first explosion sounded, followed by a dozen more explosions. Mavis glanced out from behind the tower and saw that 2/3rds of the enemy troops had been incinerated in firebomb that she had created with the grenades. Unfortunately, George was still yelling orders, meaning he was still alive.

Mavis quickly turned to mist, flying at super fast speeds until she was behind George's tower. After killing two of his men, Mavis was about to finish off George when he took out another, smaller gun and fired. A blue orb of energy, like the one the mechs fired but smaller, came out and forced Mavis back to vampire form. George then grabbed his gun and fired, but Mavis was too fast, using her super speed to knock the gun out of his hand and punch George in the face, knocking him back.

As Johnny and Mavis both advanced on George, George took something out of his belt and activated it. "What the…" Johnny murmured. George was holding what literally looked like a lightsaber.

George scowled at him, "Like this, Johnny? This is the result of our research, isn't it beautiful?"

George slashed the sword in a large arc, driving Mavis and Johnny back a little. Johnny opened fire with his gun, but George, with either luck or some sort of artificial help, managed to literally deflect all the bullets. Behind George, there was a loud rumbling sound, and the huge blast doors to the second-floor facility opened. Flying out of it was a helicopter, which opened fire on Johnny and Mavis, forcing them back behind the tower.

"That's my ride out." growled George, as a purple transparent laser came out from the bottom of the helicopter and sucked him into it.

Johnny and Mavis watched the helicopter fly away, then Mavis came back to her senses, "Come on!" she yelled, and the two of them ran over to the entry hatch, Mavis forcing the hatch open with telekinesis.

The two of them climbed the ladder down to the facility, and when they reached the bottom, the only people Johnny saw were scientists, running around and frantically trying to evacuate. Two evacuation helicopters were already flying away in the hangar bay.

Johnny and Mavis ran down the facility, and Mavis managed to grab a scientist by the neck and use her hypnosis on her, "Is this the primary weapons development facility?" she hissed at the scientist. The scientist gasped, her vision going foggy because of the lack of air, "No….The main one-It's in...Augh...St. Kilda…" Mavis dropped the scientist, who fell face first onto the cement ground, retching.

"We gotta get to St. Kilda before they receive their weapon!" yelled Mavis, "Come on, lets take one of their helicopters."

As they were running across the facility however, Johnny heard someone yell his name. He turned around, and saw, to his dismay, Gerschiv. He was in some sort of holding cell in the corner, and was wearing an eye patch.

"Oh my...Gerschiv!" Johnny and Mavis ran over, Mavis smashing open the door. Gerschiv ran out, grinning despite his condition, "I was wondering when you guys would show up." he said. Just then a soldier rounded the corner, pointing his gun at them, "Don't move or I'll-"

Gerschiv punched him in the face, grabbed his gun, and shot him, "Come on, let's get a ride." he said.

The three of them ran onto the nearest helicopter, Mavis chucking some scientists out of it, and shooting the pilots.

"Do you know how to control this thing?" asked Gerschiv. "I flew a helicopter once, with relative success." said Mavis, flipping some switches. Soon enough, the engine came to life, and a few seconds later, they were in the air, flying with the other evacuation helicopters.

Johnny glanced out the window, where he saw droves of helicopters flying around them. They didn't even know that they were there. Johnny grinned. This was going to be too easy. They were literally leading them right to St. Kilda.

That night, Gerschiv told Mavis and Johnny his story, how he survived a bullet right through the eye, woke up in a prison cell in the facility, and how the soldiers were going to use him as a test subject for one of their weapons.

"That's nasty." said Johnny, when Gerschiv told them about that, "They use living people?"

"Yeah," said Gerschiv, "Protestors, insurgents, journalists, pretty much anyone who disagrees with their methods, they lock up and test their weapons on."

"Wow." murmured Mavis.

Gerschiv looked at Johnny and Mavis, "You two look awful, go and get some sleep, I'll take care of the helicopter."

After Mavis made sure that Gerschiv wouldn't crash the helicopter, Johnny and Mavis went to the back, where the two of them kissed, "We can end this all tomorrow." said Johnny, "Our lives can go back to normal."

Mavis was staring at the wall, "Do you truly think that our lives will ever be normal?" asked Mavis.

Johnny chuckled, "I really hope so, Mavis…"


	17. Devastation

The storm whipped up strong winds that made sea mist fly onto the open hangars on the facility at St. Kilda. Standing at the facility hangars was General Clecius, watching the skies for a jet.

Soon enough that jet appeared, flying out of the horizon. It landed in the hangar, alone, and the doors of the jet opened. Four elite guards walked out, carrying their energy blades on their belts. Behind them, General Clecius's boss walked out. His boss frightened General Clecius for a few reasons. First off, he didn't even know his boss's name. Second off, he had never actually seen his boss walking around.

His boss was wearing a tuxedo, but his face so scarred and mutilated, it was painful to imagine living in his shoes.

"So…" hissed his boss, "General Clecius, my friend, you have finally arrived."

General Clecius nodded, "Yes sir, I came as soon as I received your message. Just arrived here about five minutes ago."

"Good," said the boss, "Carter Wilson, step forward."

Behind him, Carter Wilson stepped up, "What do you need, sir?" he asked.

At first, the boss didn't say anything, but then he made a hand gesture to his elite guard. The guards immediately turned on Carter Wilson, grabbing him by his arms and breaking his legs.

"Augh!" Carter fell onto his knees, blinded by pain.

His boss sighed with disappointment, "Carter, you have failed me over a dozen times these last few days."

He handed General Clecius an energy blade, except it was red instead of white, "General Clecius, kill this man, and claim your rightful place by my side."

General Clecius looked down at Carter. Carter looked back up at him, his eyes pleading. "Please…" he choked.

"See, look at him," growled the boss, "Pathetic, just like his performance. Finish him, General."

The general nodded, "As you wish, sir."

There was a quick flash of light, and Carter slumped over, the general standing over him, holding his severed head.

A few minutes later, General Clecius and the boss were talking in the command center of the facility.

"Sir, our reports may suggest that when the vampire and her human friend got into the facility at Moscow, they may have managed to hijack a helicopter." said the general.

"Mmm…" the boss murmured, "We must take caution, check every single helicopter that lands."

General Clecius nodded, "As you wish sir. The helicopters are still a few hours out, so I'll alert security immediately."

"We must not let those two into this facility," growled the boss, "This weapon, it is essential."

General Clecius nodded, "I will personally oversee security." he said.

* * *

Mavis and Johnny were sleeping in the back of the helicopter, their arms wrapped around each other, when Gerschiv yelled from the other room, "Oi, we're an hour out, better start getting ready!"

Mavis and Johnny both woke up, grumbling a little.

"I suggest you two put on those science uniforms in the back," yelled Gerschiv, "They'll make a decent disguise for a little."

Johnny and Mavis opened a storage compartment in the back and looked in. Sure enough, there were scientist uniforms stacked up. Johnny and Mavis both grabbed one, then Johnny grabbed another one for Gerschiv.

After Mavis changed, she temporarily took control of the helicopter so Gerschiv could also change. After they did that, all they could do was watch the windshield.

At the current moment, there wasn't much out there apart from endless water.

"Look!" Mavis said, pointing.

At first, Johnny couldn't see it, but then it came into human-view. It was a small island, about a square mile, with a massive facility installed on the top of it just like the one in Moscow, except this one had anti-aircraft guns, and this one was much, much bigger.

All around them, the helicopters began to descend slowly, preparing for landing. Mavis followed suit. It was then when a voice came onto the intercom, " _Weapons Development Security to Chopper C991, please confirm your id_."

Mavis looked back at Johnny, "What do I do?" she asked.

Gerschiv pressed the unmute button on the communications panel, "This is Chopper…" Gerschiv looked up at a series of numbers painted on the doorway of the cockpit, "7839192." he finished.

" _Okay, your chopper has been cleared for entry, you may continue."_

Gerschiv sighed with relief, "I didn't think that would work." he said, "These guys really shouldn't spray paint their IDs on their doorways."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "They probably can't remember it, that's all." she said.

As Mavis navigated the chopper into the hangar, she lightly lowered it onto the ground, wanting to make her landing seem as smooth as possible.

"Last time, Johnny crashed us." said Mavis, playfully poking at Johnny.

"Hey, that was only 'cause we were out of fuel." said Johnny.

As they walked out of the back of the chopper, a security agent walked up to them, "I need your identifications before I can let you go anywhere." he said.

Mavis spoke first, "Oh! I think I forgot it in the chopper, come on, I'll show you it."

Mavis, Johnny, Gerschiv, and the security agent all walked back into the cockpit. As soon as the security agent walked through, Mavis telekinetically shut the door and grabbed the agent, "You will forget you ever saw us and check this helicopter off as clear." she said, staring at the agent right in the eyes.

"I'll...forget….clear….helicopter…" murmured the agent, his eyes blank. Then he came back to his senses, opened the door, and walked right out the helicopter, going to the next one.

Mavis, Johnny, and Gerschiv quickly ran out of the helicopter, trying to act normal as they walked across the facility, nodding and saying hi to random scientists who greeted them.

"We need to find where they're building their weapon, and destroy it." whispered Mavis to Johnny, who nodded. Johnny and Gerschiv had both armed themselves with small pistols they found in the helicopter, so they would have some means of destroying it.

The three of them turned a corner, following the signs that said "Research and Development", when they ran face to face with…General Clecius.

Johnny and Mavis both stopped right there, and quickly resumed their pace, trying to act casual. "Ah, finally, you three, I need you guys in room A721." said General Clecius to them, "I need the multirotary binumerical hyperprocessor recalibrated at four times the optimal neutronal wavelength."

Johnny nodded, not saying anything. Gerschiv muttered a "Yes sir.", and they continued walking forward, before General Clecius stopped them, "Sorry, but I believe room A721 is _that_ way." said General Clecius, pointing at a hallway to the side, "And after you're done with that, go to room C1, we're doing our first test of the weapon."

Johnny glanced at Mavis, who looked back excitedly. They had just received a ticket straight to the weapon. "Yes sir." said Johnny, this time confidently.

The three of them walked down the hallway he had directed them to, and opened the door to room A721, where there were two other scientists working. One of them glanced up at them, "Finally, I was wondering when some more help was arriving."

Before they could say anything else, Mavis waved her hands, "Sleep." she said. Both scientists fell asleep. Gerschiv looked mildly impressed, "Your girl's pretty sick." he said to Johnny. Johnny grinned, "I know." he said back.

The three of them stood there, "Well, what now?" asked Gerschiv, "We should go to the weapons room."

"Nah, that'll look suspicious, he'll probably be like, 'how come you're already done?'." said Mavis, "I say we trash this place, then blame it on these two," she gestured at the two sleeping scientists.

"Speaking of which, what are they building here?" asked Gerschiv. He looked at the table that the scientists were working on. There were blueprints scattered here and there, but in the center, there was something that looked familiar.

Johnny walked towards it. It looked like a small metal cylinder, but then he remembered where he saw it. It was the lightsaber thingy that he saw George wield at the Moscow facility. The three of them rifled through the notes that the scientists were taking on the lightsaber, and Johnny felt his heat rise.

 _Classification of Weapon: Melee, for specialized units only_

 _Source: A biological anomaly known as "blobby". We used Blobby's gel-like skin and heated it to 14,000 C, created a gas that is able to contain incredible amounts of power in a small space. Concentrating it created a finite-distanced beam of light that appears to be able to cut through anything._

 _Weapon name: Doom Blade_

Johnny growled. He grabbed the doom blade, "Blobby would've wanted us to have this blade, not _them_." he said, as he saw Mavis look at him uncertainly.

Mavis sighed, "Poor Blobby." she said.

"What're you doing, Gerschiv?" asked Johnny, as he saw Gerschiv pull out a sledgehammer from one of the utility closets.

"Oh nothing, just destroying the rest of their work so nobody gets it." said Gerschiv, smashing a computer to bits.

After a little while, the entire laboratory was in shambles, and Mavis, Gerschiv, and Johnny had all armed themselves with weapons they had found while rummaging through the room. Gerschiv had taken a Gravity Hammer, while Johnny took a second doom blade he found in a closet. Mavis decided not to take anything, being a vampire and already lethal.

The three of them walked out of the laboratory, looking a little cheerful after venting their anger on the lab. "Which room was the weapon in again?" asked Johnny. "I think he said C1." said Mavis.

The three of them made their way to room C1, passing by the guards after Mavis mind-wiped them. Room C1 seemed to be a large, auditorium-like room, with seats facing a glass chamber in the center. In the middle of the glass chamber, there was a ring of metal with blue stones circling it. Crimson liquid flowed through tubes that entered the ring, making it glow.

Mavis shuddered when she saw that, "That's my blood." she whispered to Johnny, "They took it at the place where I was held."

Johnny heat rose, but he managed to keep a straight face, "Let's do what we came here for." he whispered to Mavis.

The three of them began to make their way towards the control panel, which was at the opposite end of the room, but right as they got up, General Clecius walked into the room.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the first test of the Gliotoxin hyperlaser." said General Clecius, "This weapon is powered by corrupted vampire blood, which we received from a facility in the Himalayan Alps a few days ago."

Johnny felt Mavis shift next to him, remembering the place she was held for two days.

"This laser will be able to strike in any area in the world, destroying everything within two hundred miles and releasing a deadly chemical gas that can be remotely controlled with a computer." said General Clecius.

There was suddenly a whirring noise, as the ring slowly rotated until it was facing upwards.

"Today, we will be testing this weapon on the city of Santa Cruz," said General Clecius, "The story that we will offer is that it was a nuclear leak from a fission reactor."

"No." Johnny murmured under his breath. Santa Cruz was his hometown. Mavis was looking at him uncertainly, "What do we do?" she mouthed.

"The weapon will be fired in T=45 seconds." said General Clecius, "Watch and observe the future of technology!"

There was a loud cheer from the scientists, as they eagerly watched the ring heat up. The vampire blood that was circulating in the ring seemed to glow brighter.

Johnny mouthed to Mavis and Gerschiv, "Attack."

Without any warning, Gerschiv stood up, pointing his gun at the person at the control panel, and fired, killing him. Mavis turned into purple mist and killed two of the nearest guards. Johnny pulled his assault rifle out and opened fire, killing more guards.

"KILL THE IMPOSTERS!" roared General Clecius.

Gerschiv took out his gravity hammer and swung it down, hard. It hit the ground, creating an energy wave that knocked all the scientists right out of their seats.

Johnny took out his doom blade, activating it. He charged at the nearest guard and skewered him through the blade, then ran at the control panel, aiming to destroy it.

"Not today, you won't!" yelled General Clecius, drawing his own doom blade and parrying Johnny's blade away from the control panel. Johnny and General Clecius got locked into a sword fight, both ruthlessly trying to kill the other.

 _Weapon will activate in T=20 seconds_. Said a voice on the intercom.

Johnny managed to slash General Clecius's thumb off, causing him to roar with pain. Taking advantage of this, Johnny made a slash at his neck, but the general countered it, ignoring the pain caused by his bleeding hand.

Mavis was holding off a full battalion of soldier all by herself, tossing them around the room like rag dolls. Scientists and researchers ran around frantically, screaming.

 _Weapon will activate in T=10 seconds_

Mavis finally finished off the last soldier she was fighting and turned to General Clecius, throwing him twenty meters across the room with her telekinesis.

 _Weapon will activate in T=5 seconds_

Johnny ran over to the control panel, raising his blade and plunging it-

 _Weapon has activated._

Right as Johnny finally stabbed the control panel, the ring of metal shot out a brief, thick laser that was launched into the sky. The sky thundered.

 _The laser has reached Santa Cruz, 32% effectiveness, only 80% of city has been destroyed. Weapon will be ready to fire again in 7 days. Low effectiveness caused by apparent lack of function from the control panel._

"NO!" Johnny turned around to see General Clecius get up and charge him.

Johnny activated his doom blade, parrying his first two attacks. Mavis was about to use telekinesis when Clecius threw a grenade her way, blasting her back, where she didn't move.

"Mavis!" yelled Johnny. He activated both doom blades that he had taken and lunged at the general, not holding back at all. He chopped off his entire hand this time, and Gerschiv jumped out of nowhere, hitting General Clecius in the face with the gravity hammer, making him fly forty feet across the room and slam into the wall.

General Clecius laughed when Gerschiv and Johnny closed on him, "So foolish…" he murmured. He pressed a button that was attached to his watch, and a weird purple light enveloped him. When the light was gone, he was gone as well.

"No!" yelled Gerschiv, kicking a table nearby, "He must've had some sort of teleportation thing on him!"

Johnny wasn't as worried about the general. He ran over to Mavis, where she lay. Her breathing was shallow and her eyes were closed, still unconscious.

"Get a helicopter," said Johnny, "Let's move!"

Johnny and Gerschiv both ran to the hangar, where there were dozens of soldiers waiting for them. Gerschiv smashed his gravity hammer into the ground, knocking back all of the soldiers, some of them even going off the edge into the ocean.

Johnny, still carrying Mavis, ran onto a jet, stabbing the scientists in the back and chopping off the heads of the pilots.

 _These guys just made it personal, attacking my hometown_. Was the only thing he thought.

Gerschiv yelled, "Lets get out of here!". Johnny set down Mavis and punched a few buttons. It was quite similar to flying a helicopter. Soon enough they were whizzing over the Atlantic Ocean at 575 miles per hour.

Luckily, the controls had an autopilot function. Johnny set the jet to autopilot to Santa Cruz. He feared the worst. What if his family was also dead?

Johnny walked to the back, where Mavis was laying on the floor. He knelt over her, feeling her pulse. It was weak, but it was there. Johnny sighed, "Nothing too bad at least, she's only unconscious." he said.

Gerschiv was watching from the corner, "We should've stayed longer," he said, "We could've destroyed the weapon if we did."

Johnny shook his head, "I doubt it, that glass was probably tougher than you thought."

"I'm sure a gravity hammer could've gotten through it." said Gerschiv.

Johnny sighed, "Well point is, we didn't. Maybe we should've tried, but whatever. Let's just try to keep our heads low now."

Gerschiv laughed, "We just openly attacked a military facility in the middle of the Atlantic, we aren't very low-key, are we?"

Johnny didn't reply, he just stared at the horizon, wondering what the next day would bring him.

* * *

 **okay i'm gonna be making 1-2 chapters per week starting now. Depends on my mood.**


	18. Love

Mavis didn't remember anything after the grenade. She only remembered a bright flash of light, and getting knocked onto the ground, hard. Then she had gone unconscious. Now, she felt the floor. She heard what sounded like a jet engine whirring in the background. But she was so _tired_. Was she in a government plane, and was being shipped off to die? Or was she safe? Mavis didn't know.

Mavis opened her eyes, looking around. She was lying on a cushion on the side of what appeared to be a private jet.

"Mavey! You're awake!" Mavis turned around to see Johnny walk over, smiling. "Yeah, I'm awake," said Mavis, "What...happened?"

Johnny's smile faded a little, "Well...uh...General Clecius escaped."

"Mmm...that was always possible." murmured Mavis, filling a styrofoam cup with water at the water dispenser.

"He had some sort of teleportation device on him. We were about to finish him." said Johnny, rubbing the back of his head uncomfortably.

"Well, what else happened?" asked Mavis.

"Well, after the general escaped, I took you and captured this jet. Gerschiv is on the lookout for any bad guys right now." said Johnny.

"Oh..okay." said Mavis, "And where are we going?"

"We're heading to...uh, Santa Cruz right now." said Johnny uncomfortably.

"Oh...I'm so, so sorry about that," said Mavis, "We should've acted sooner to stop the weapon."

Johnny nodded, "But...if my family's...you know…"

"Oh Johnny, don't say that." said Mavis, kissing Johnny, "I'm sure they're okay.". Even as she said this, Mavis knew it probably wasn't true, but Johnny looked so pitiful right now that she didn't dare say so.

Johnny smiled lightly, "You know, as long as we have each other, we'll be good.". Mavis nodded, smiling as well, "I love you, Johnny." she suddenly said.

"Love you too, Mavey." said Johnny.

In the cockpit, Gerschiv suddenly yelled back at them, "Oi! You two lovebirds better come see this!"

Johnny and Mavis both ran to the cockpit, "What? Are we under attack?" asked Johnny frantically, looking around. But then he saw it.

"What the hell…" he murmured. Beneath them, a massive jagged crack had formed in the earth. In the distance, Johnny counted several more, all of them leading to-

"Santa Cruz." said Gerschiv, pointing, "Looks as if that place was hit hard, buddy."

Johnny could only stare. Santa Cruz was literally a smoking crater at that point. Fires burned in the crater, and rescue teams had surrounded it, but weren't able to get near it, thanks to a thick white gas that was hanging over it. It must've been the chemical weapon that the laser created in addition to the destruction.

Mavis was also staring, lost for words. Her mouth was hanging open.

"Where do you want to land the plane?" asked Gerschiv.

"Get to the southern region." said Johnny.

Gerschiv navigated the jet to the southern region, and Johnny's heart sank. The entire southern region, which included his family's home probably, was a pile of charcoal.

Mavis was watching Johnny with anxiety, "Johnny..?" she said uncertainly.

Johnny turned around, and walked to the back, shutting the door behind him. "Johnny!" called Mavis, running after him, but before she left the cockpit, she turned back to Gerschiv, "Get us to Washington DC."

Gerschiv nodded grimly, "Alrighty."

Mavis walked to the back of the plane, where she saw Johnny crying in the corner. Mavis sat next to him, giving him a tissue.

"I n-never thought a-about what w-would happen if they d-died." Johnny said, his face buried in the tissue, "I've lost s-so much…"

Mavis didn't know what to say. She had met Johnny's family once. His three brothers and his sister, along with his mother and father. Now all of them were dead.

"Johnny, think about what your parents would want," said Mavis lightly, "you have to be strong right now."

Johnny nodded, "y-you're right. I-I shouldn't b-be like this right now."

Mavis hugged Johnny, holding him close, "We still have each other, you know." she said. Johnny kissed Mavis, "You're all I have now." he said softly.

Mavis paused. They were both the same now. Both of them had their families and friends killed. Both of them had nothing but each other.

Johnny wiped another tear out, "So anyways," he said, trying not to cry anymore, "Where are we going now?"

Mavis, taken aback by such a normal question, responded a little late, "We, uh, we're heading to Washington DC. I felt as if it was a nice place to lie low."

Johnny nodded, "That's probably a good idea." he said, drinking some water.

Mavis kissed Johnny, then got up, "I'll go and get you a blanket. Just rest for now." she said. Johnny nodded, "Okay…" he said tiredly.

A few seconds later, Johnny was sleeping in the back, on a sofa. Mavis sat next to him, watching him. She was worried. She remembered how angry she was when she lost her dad. What if Johnny losing his family causes him to do something reckless? Mavis shook her head. She needed to trust her husband. With that thought in mind, she also wrapped herself up in a blanket and fell asleep, right next to Johnny.

* * *

"The weapon fired?" asked the man behind the desk, "Is it operational?"

General Clecius nodded, "Yes it is," he said, "The vampire and her little pet hampered it a little though, it only fired at 32% efficiency, but we still destroyed most of Santa Cruz."

The man behind the desk nodded, "Good. Is it recharging right now?"

The general nodded again, "Yes, our scientists are recharging it. Sir, some of our security chiefs feel as if it isn't wise to keep the weapon in St. Kilda. The vampire and her human are still out there, and they also have another accomplice."

"Another one?"

"Yes sir. A man by the name of Gerschiv. He was the only one who survived the attack at Mount Galena." said the General.

"Hmph. Well, in that case, we should move the weapon to a different facility. Perhaps the one in the Aux Isles." said the man behind the desk.

"Perhaps?" asked the general innocently.

"Move it there." said the man behind the desk, "Also, how is the news on Santa Cruz?"

"We have the population convinced that it was due to a massive earthquake, mainly because a nuclear leak didn't seem explosive enough," said the general, "But there are still critics who are trying to expose us."

The man behind the desk waved his hand dismissively, "They will be silenced by my secret police, do not worry."

The general stood up a little straighter, "Are there any other orders I can take from you?" he asked.

"No. Go, and make sure not to fail." said the man behind the desk.

* * *

Johnny woke up to the sight of Mavis's face. He smiled. "Waking up to a great view." he said, getting up.

Mavis blushed, "Stop it, Johnny. Gerschiv just wanted me to tell you that we're gonna be landing in an isolated field thirty minutes outside of Washington. Luckily, we're still out of communication tower range."

Johnny sighed, "Alright, just make sure we don't get spotted."

As they landed in the field, Johnny glanced out the windows, looking at their surroundings. They seemed to be in what appeared to be an abandoned farm. It was well-isolated, but also relatively close to the city.

"Alright, rise and shine, lovebirds, welcome to the Rurals outside Washington DC." said Gerschiv over the intercom.

As the three of them exited the plane, Johnny noticed that he was tense, his finger already on the trigger of his gun. He sighed. This was probably the first time he's legally flown a plane since a while ago.

The three of them found the farmhouse a few hundred feet away from where the landed the plane. It was nothing like a stereotypical red-and-white farmhouse. It looked quite normal actually, having a porch, windows, and a chimney. Everything just looked old.

Mavis and Johnny took the master bedroom for themselves, Mavis cleaning the entire thing telekinetically. Gerschiv snickered at them, ("Have fun sleeping together."), and took the guest room, which was downstairs.

For the rest of the day, Mavis and Johnny practiced fighting technique in the field, while Gerschiv walked to Washington DC to get some food, promising not to get caught, and promised to be back by 5:30 pm latest.

Mavis began teaching Johnny Kugun, an ancient form of fighting used by vampires that Dracula had taught her when she was younger, while Johnny taught Mavis Karate. The two of them mixed the two fighting forms, using their strengths to defend the other's weakness. By the end of the day, both Mavis and Johnny were sweating, bruised, and cramped from all the practice.

When Gerschiv came back, dragging two grocery bags and carrying three more on his back, Mavis telekinetically grabbed all of them and put them onto the dinner table. That night, they had a decent meal: mashed potatoes, chicken legs, pasta, and even duck liver. Mavis took particular liking to the duck liver.

"So," said Mavis while drinking another bowl of soup in one gulp, "What're we gonna do?" she asked.

Gerschiv tapped on his glass of water, "We have a few choices, all of them with their pros and cons."

"So, tell us about it." said Johnny, eating his pasta.

"We can stay here and lie low until the feds make their move. Hopefully they do something dumb that somehow exposes their position in some way. We could also take the jet back to St. Kilda tomorrow and attempt another attack." said Gerschiv.

Johnny and Mavis glanced at each other, "I think laying low for now is a better idea." they both said.

Gerschiv shrugged, "Sure."

That night, Mavis walked into the master bedroom after telekinetically cleaning the dishes to find Johnny staring out the window.

"Hey, Mavey." said Johnny weakly when he saw her enter.

Mavis walked over to him, "Are you okay? You sound weird."

Johnny shrugged, "I mean, I'm just thinking."

"About what?" asked Mavis.

"About the future. What happens to us after all this is over?" asked Johnny.

Mavis didn't know if it was her vampire sense, or if it was just intuition, "You already have an answer to that, don't you?" she said.

Johnny sighed, "Everyone I was close to, everyone who I love is dead. Everyone apart from you."

Mavis stared at the wall glumly, "We've been through everything together," she said, "It only makes us stronger."

Johnny decided at that moment to initiate the kiss. They held it for a long time, before both of them fell onto the bed, and kissed again. Their bodies were close, meshed together, inseparable.

Once they broke their second kiss, Mavis licked her lips, "You know, we haven't quite done this properly yet…"

Johnny gulped, nervous. "I trust you Mav, more than anyone." he said.

The next thing he knew, both of them were tearing off articles of clothing, exploring each other, passionately making love.

That night would be one to remember.

* * *

Mavis looked around. She knew she was dreaming, and she knew that she was asleep, but was perfectly conscious. She frowned. Johnny told her that this is what humans called Lucid Dreaming.

Mavis seemed to be back in the facility at St. Kilda. Around her, soldiers and scientists were gathering to see something.

A jet suddenly flew into the hangar, and the back of it opened. Out walked General Clecius, dragging Johnny and Gerschiv, who were both unconscious.

Mavis hated watching it, but couldn't force herself to stop. _Why can't I just end this dream_. She thought to herself.

Suddenly, a door at the end of the facility opened, and three robed guards walked out, escorting...someone. Mavis didn't know who it was. His face was hidden by a cloak.

"Congratulations, General Clecius." said the cloaked man, "You have served me well."

General Clecius nodded, "Thank you sir." he said.

"But now your usefulness is out." said the cloaked man, "You have been replaced."

There was suddenly a flash of light, and General Clecius's head came right off. Behind him, to Mavis's shock, was...herself.

Mavis stared at herself. Her expression was blank, like an empty slate, and she was wearing a cloak. The Mavis in the dream dragged Johnny and Gerschiv to the cloaked man and threw them onto the ground.

"Mavis, kill them." said the cloaked man, "Prove to me your loyalty."

Mavis grabbed Gerschiv, and snapped his neck easily. Johnny woke up in the middle and saw what was going on. "Mavis…" he croaked, "Mavis…"

The Mavis in the dream didn't care. She grabbed Johnny and also snapped his neck. Easily.

The real Mavis watched all of this, gaping in horror. _This isn't real_. She told herself, _I love Johnny, it can't be real._

 _Oh, but is it_? Asked another voice in her head, _How do you know that this isn't what you'll become?_

 _Shut up_. Mavis told herself.

Mavis refocused her attention on what was happening in the dream, which seemed to shut up the voices in her head.

"My apprentice, rise." said the cloaked man, "We have much to discuss."

The two of them walked to the back of the facility, and as Mavis watched them, she saw herself in the dream kiss the cloaked man…

"Mavis!"

Mavis suddenly opened her eyes, and was greeted by a beautiful sight. Johnny was leaning over her, staring at her worriedly. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Johnny had already thrown his clothes back on, and was looking at Mavis as if she was about to explode.

Mavis grumbled a little, sitting up and rubbing the back of her head, "Ugh...it was a nightmare, no biggy."

Johnny tossed Mavis her shirt and pants, "It sounded like a biggy. At first you were just mumbling stuff, but then, you started, uh...crying."

"I did not!", then Mavis felt her face, and sure enough, there were tears on there.

"Well, are you gonna tell me what happened in the nightmare, or am I gonna have to stay here until you tell me?" asked Johnny.

Mavis sighed, she _really_ didn't want to talk about this dream. "In the dream...I….uh…killed you."

Johnny stared, "What?"

"In the dream, I was working for this cloaked guy, I think he's the guy behind all this. Apparently I was supposed to be his new apprentice, and I killed General Clecius in front of him, and-"

Mavis suddenly began to rock back and forth, "What if I actually do it? What if that's what will happen in the future?" she asked, starting to panic.

Johnny leaned down and kissed Mavis softly, "Hey, it was just a dream, like you said, okay? I trust you with my life."

Mavis blushed, "Thanks, Johnny." she said, hugging Johnny.

As she hugged Johnny, Mavis understood why Johnny was so intent upon thinking about the future. Now she was as well, after seeing that dream.


	19. Crash II

When Mavis and Johnny went downstairs to eat breakfast, they saw Gerschiv, already pouring them cereal which he had bought from a store in Washington.

"Oh, hey." he said, when he saw them enter, "You two had fun last night?"

Mavis blushed, and Johnny sighed, "Just give us our cereal, Gerschiv."

Gerschiv chuckled and slid the two bowls of cereal over to them, "Rice krispies, fresh from Target." he said proudly.

As Mavis and Johnny ate their cereal, Gerschiv was watching them, "So, I was thinking last night. We know the weapon will be recharged in 7 days, so we have to get back to it by that time. We okay with that much?"

Mavis and Johnny both nodded, listening.

"Well, I figured that if the feds aren't as dumb as they look, then they probably moved the weapon, so it won't be in St. Kilda if we go back," said Gerschiv, "meaning, we'll be needing somebody to tell us where it is."

Johnny perked up, "The Pentagon is in Washington DC, not too far from here actually."

"Exactly," said Gerschiv, "But we'll be needing some interrogation skills as well.". Gerschiv looked at Mavis.

Mavis rolled her eyes, "If it comes to it, I'll do it."

"Alright then, when should we do that then?" asked Gerschiv, "I mean, we only have five days left to get to the weapon."

"We'll chill here for another day, then we can get figure out where the weapon is hidden tomorrow. Then we'll set off immediately after that." said Johnny.

Gerschiv nodded, "Doesn't sound like a bad plan," he said, "But we'll be needing some plane fuel. Do any of you guys mind if I go steal some?"

Mavis glanced at Johnny, who looked back, "Nah, go ahead, just be back by 11:00 am." they both said.

"We really are the bad guys." chuckled Gerschiv. Then he gulped down the rest of his SunnyD and walked out the door, hiding a pistol in his pocket as he did.

Mavis and Johnny finished their cereal in silence.

"Mav, wanna go outside to train?" asked Johnny.

"Sure." said Mavis, getting up and telekinetically throwing their cereal bowls into the sink while washing them.

That day, the two of them did a different sort of combat training. Mavis would throw objects telekinetically at Johnny, which he would deflect with his doom blade. It tired both of them out fast. Within an hour, both of them couldn't take any more of it. Mavis had thrown bricks, logs, even a screwdriver at Johnny, and Johnny managed to deflect most of them. The doom blade seemed to come with something that forced his arm to deflect anything that came near him.

After all the brick-throwing, Mavis and Johnny did hand-to-hand combat training, where they continued practicing Kugun and Karate. Mavis completely destroyed Johnny, but decided to go easy on him at the last second, letting him get some hits through.

By the time 10:00 am arrived, the two of them decided to go back indoors and wait for Gerschiv. With each passing minute, the two of them grew more and more nervous.

"What if something happened?" asked Mavis, "What if he got caught?"

Johnny didn't answer, looking at the main road nervously, waiting for him to get back.

Suddenly the back door opened and closed. Johnny looked at Mavis, who mouthed back, "Lemme check.", and turned to mist, flying to the back. Johnny grabbed his assault rifle, aiming it at the back door room, when he heard Mavis say, "Gerschiv! What has happened to you?"

Gerschiv came stumbling into the room. His left half of the face was covered with blood, "We have to get going," he said urgently, " _Now._ "

He was carrying two canisters of fuel under his arm, so at least he had gotten the fuel. But all the blood told Johnny that he probably got caught. He didn't ask questions. "Let's go!" he yelled.

The three of them grabbed their bags and ran down to the plane, which was sitting in the field. Gerschiv ran to the cockpit and began flipping switches, while Johnny threw their bags into the corner and closed the door.

Soon enough the jet engine was whirring to life. "Open the fuel hatch!" yelled Gerschiv. Mavis scanned the jet for a fuel hatch, and found it, in the right hand corner. She opened it, revealing a black rubber tube behind it. "I got it!" yelled Mavis.

Gerschiv ran back and poured fuel into the jet engine, then ran back to the cockpit. A few seconds later, however-

 _This is the police, stop where you are!_

A bullet suddenly pinged against the side of the jet. Luckily, this was supposed to be a military transport jet, so it was bulletproof.

More bullets began bouncing off of the armor, and Johnny yelled, "Gerschiv, get us off the ground!"

The jet suddenly lurched forward, Johnny and Mavis being thrown back. Soon enough they were flying, but this offered little comfort to Johnny or Mavis.

"What the hell were you doing?" asked Johnny frustratingly, "We told you not to get caught!"

"They found me after I stole some fuel, the people who saw me called the police." said Gerschiv, not taking his eyes away from the windshield.

"Well, how the hell-"

"Johnny." said Mavis, "Don't bash him."

Johnny stopped, still glaring at Gerschiv. "Fine, well lets hope the air force doesn't-"

"Don't worry," said Gerschiv, "This jet's a stealth transport. Nobody's gonna find us."

"Well, where are we gonna go now?" asked Mavis, a little less accusatory than Johnny.

"I've set course to the Warren Air Force Base." said Gerschiv matter-of-factly.

"What? What's that?" asked Johnny.

Gerschiv sighed, rolling his eyes, "It's a nuclear missile silo for the US military. I figured that if they make weapons as big as nuclear missiles, then they would know where the weapon is being hidden now."

Johnny still wasn't convinced, "And what if they don't know where it is?"

"Then," Gerschiv said, "The joke would really be on us."

As they flew over the border to West Virginia, Mavis asked, "Well...how long until we get there?"

"Only about two hours, assuming we don't run into bad weather." said Gerschiv. He made the plane go to its maximum height to reduce detectability. According to the altitude indicator, they were now 60,000 feet above sea level. Mavis could see the curvature of the earth by now.

"Wow…" murmured Mavis. She had only heard stories about space and what lie beyond the skies, but this was truly beyond her expectations.

Johnny had retreated to the back room because of the altitude gain, and was repressurising his ears, and Mavis joined him as well.

"Johnny, what do you think about the plan? The plan to go to the missile silo?" asked Mavis, nervously tapping her fingers against her arm.

Johnny sighed, "I don't know...we can't go to the Pentagon, 'cause they're probably on maximum security right now, and we don't know for certain if they're in St. Kilda."

"But why do we have to attack a missile silo? Why not a smaller installation? One that's probably easier to infiltrate?" asked Mavis.

Johnny had already thought of this question, "Well...smaller installations probably don't know about the super weapon they're developing. I mean, this is a city-destroying laser we're talking about, it's not small. The people working at a nuclear silo probably know where it is better than anyone else..."

Mavis wasn't convinced, but if Johnny thought it would work, then she believed him. She was already having doubts about Gerschiv.

* * *

The man behind the desk sighed, "So you're telling me…" he said, "That we spotted the three of them in Washington DC?"

General Clecius nodded, "Yes sir, but since they're using one of our stolen stealth transports, the military couldn't get a track on them fast enough. They've escaped again."

"How about the weapon? Is it safe in the Aux Isles?" asked the man behind the desk.

"Yes sir, it's been delivered by me personally. I assure you that it is safe." said General Clecius.

"Hmph. I do not feel as if your assurance is enough, given what happened a few days ago…" growled the man behind the desk, "The human himself seemed to inflict damage upon you."

General Clecius winced, his electronic right hand twitching a little, "Sir, they do not know that we're hiding it in the Aux Isles, and if they do, then they'll have to kill me before laying a finger on it."

The man behind the desk laughed mirthlessly, "You amuse me, General Clecius. Go, protect the weapon. Do not fail me a second time."

* * *

As the plane neared the Warren Air Force base, Johnny went back into the cockpit to watch the windshield. The plane had been set to autopilot, and was now operating on its own. Gerschiv was snoring at the pilot's seat, having fallen asleep thirty minutes ago.

Mavis came into the cockpit behind him, also watching the area below them, "How much longer until we reach the place?" she asked.

Johnny glanced at the display that was being projected onto a screen that was installed at the front of the cockpit, "Um...It says another fifteen minutes."

Mavis suddenly jerked upwards, "What the hell…" she murmured.

"What? What is it?" asked Johnny.

Mavis frowned. Her ears were picking up something. "I think...rocket?" she said confusingly, right as a missile exploded about twenty meters left of their plane.

"Woah!" The explosion was so big that even the plane shook. Gerschiv's eyes flew open. "What the-" he said, right as a second missile blew up in front of them.

"They're launching surface-to-air missiles," yelled Johnny, "Gerschiv, don't get us-"

 _BOOM_

This time, a missile flew and exploded very close to the plane, only a few meters away, blowing away part of the wing.

"Augh! We're losing altitude!" yelled Gerschiv, frantically trying to stabilize the throttle.

Mavis was knocked to the ground as more missiles exploded near the jet, each one with varying degrees of accuracy.

Mavis got back up and ran to the windshield, looking down. Sure enough, she already counted one, two, three, four white trails of smoke that were streaking right towards them.

Mavis concentrated, using telekinesis to alter the flight paths of two of them, but the other two still blew up near the jet, this time setting the already-damaged wing on fire.

Gerschiv had managed to prevent the plane from free-falling, but they were beginning to drop faster and faster, the speed indicator telling them that they were below 60,000 feet.

Three more missiles exploded near them, the first two missing by a couple of meters, but finally, the third one hit the back of the jet.

 _Hsssssssssssss_

The entire back of the jet tore off, causing decompression to instantly settle in. It immediately became hard to breath, and the plane began to free fall.

Mavis was using her vampire strength to hold onto Johnny while holding onto the back of a seat, as the tear in the back of the jet was causing a vacuum to form that could suck them out.

Johnny finally saw an emergency switch labeled _Seal Cockpit_. He flipped it immediately. Instantly, the cockpit doors closed and sealed shut.

By now, they were only 40,000 feet above the ground, and the missiles had stopped firing. Maybe they thought that they would crash whether or not they continued their attack.

As the jet flew below 30,000 feet, Johnny was able to distinctly make out the Warren Air Force Base below them. It was a large, rectangular building with all sorts of military vehicles parked out front.

Finally, when they whizzed past 10,000 feet, Mavis realized that Gerschiv probably wouldn't be able to do a non-fatal crash landing, so she began to use her telekinesis to help tilt the plane in the right direction.

5,000 feet. 3,000 feet. 1,000 feet.

By now, Johnny was able to see that they would probably land about a mile from the Warren Air Force Base.

500 feet.

Finally, Mavis concentrated and gave the entire jet one last tug in the right direction, right as the jet slammed into the ground, sending everyone in the cockpit flying.

Gerschiv, who was strapped onto his seat, managed to be the first one to get back up, "Come on, we don't have any time! Come on!"

Mavis scrambled up, looking behind her, where she found Johnny, lying on the ground, not moving.

Mavis's heart sank. She ran over and felt Johnny's pulse, hoping for something. Sure enough, it was there.

Mavis sighed with relief, and when Gerschiv saw Johnny, he said, "C'mon, lets get going! Carry Johnny using you telekinesis, he should be fine."

Gerschiv had already grabbed his gravity hammer, and had tossed on a backpack. Mavis used telekinesis to levitate Johnny a few feet above the ground, preparing herself for the inevitable battle that was soon to come.


	20. Resolve

As Mavis and Gerschiv ran out of the plane, Mavis looked around and located the Air Force Base, about a mile from them. She, while levitating Johnny, and Gerschiv both ran towards it, until Mavis's ears picked up something.

"Gerschiv, get behind something!" she hissed, right before shoving herself and Johnny behind a boulder.

Gerschiv, fortunately for him, listened to Mavis and dove behind a bush right as a group of four soldiers appeared about four hundred meters ahead of them and walked right past them.

"I don't see the fuss, it's probably like the February incident," said one soldier, "Probably just some rogue rich guy flying his plane 'cause he can."

"There's still a chance," said another soldier, "The vampire apparently escaped from Washington DC a few hours ago."

"Hmph." the soldier's voices disappeared as they continued walking towards the wreckage of the plane.

As soon as Mavis saw the four soldiers disappear behind the trees and bushes, she signalled to Gerschiv, and the two of them continued trekking their way through the forest.

When they made their way to the edge of the forest, about fifteen minutes later, Gerschiv and Mavis both peeked out from behind a tree and glanced at the entrance of the base. The entire base appeared to be walled off, and the entrance was a massive gate that was flanked by guards. Mavis didn't know if that was normal or if that was because of them crashing the plane.

Mavis whispered to Gerschiv, "Let's go around, I can use my antigravity to climb the wall, then use my telekinesis to levitate you guys up and over the walls."

The walls were only about eight feet high, so it shouldn't be that hard. Gerschiv nodded, and the two of them went around the base until they were on the other side, Mavis levitating Johnny the entire way.

The side of the base they were on now didn't have any guards, just a blank slate of wall with no entrance. Mavis smiled. This was perfect.

Mavis ran over to the edge of the base, and used her antigravity to walk up the wall, while simultaneously using telekinesis to levitate Gerschiv and Johnny as well.

When Mavis peeked her head over the top of the wall, she noticed a few things. The entire compound was filled with humvees and tanks, all of which were parked. A few soldiers were walking around, talking, while others jogged around the compound. Mavis did notice that all of the soldiers had their guns, and some were looking around nervously. Mavis cursed under her breath. Maybe the soldiers suspected that they were the ones in the crashed plane.

"How is it?" whispered Gerschiv from underneath her.

"We're good, but the soldiers look alert," said Mavis, "Wait a second…"

Mavis walked a few meters to the right, until she was safely behind a low concrete building that hid them from sight. Mavis quickly went over the wall, jumping down and bringing Johnny and Gerschiv over the wall. As soon as she stopped levitating the two of them, Mavis felt a massive weight come off her shoulders. All the telekinesis was really draining her.

Mavis re-levitated Johnny and quickly pressed herself against the wall, not wanting to get spot. Gerschiv followed suit, hefting his gravity hammer in case of any trouble.

As the three of them quickly made their way around the building, Mavis used her extra-sensory perception to sense if anyone was around the corner. When she heard nobody, she went around the corner and walked up to the doorway. There was a bronze plaque embedded into the door:

 _Air Force Barracks_

Before Mavis could even move a muscle, the door opened, and two soldiers came out, talking. As soon as they saw her, they froze. Mavis didn't hesitate. Two quick punches sent the two soldiers flying back into the barracks, knocking them out.

"Shhhh," said Gerschiv urgently, "Keep it low."

The two of them quickly ran into the room, Mavis checking to make sure nobody else was there. Sure enough, the two soldiers seemed to have been the only two in the entire room. As Gerschiv rummaged around, Mavis suddenly heard talking outside the door.

"What the...isn't this the terrorist? How did he get in here? And why's he knocked out?"

"I dunno, lets bring him to chief, he'll know what to do with him."

Mavis's heart sank. Her brain froze. How could she. How could she forget Johnny.

With a flash, Mavis vanished, with what only could be recognized as super vampire speed. There was suddenly a temporary conical sphere of white air that surrounded where she just was as she broke the sound barrier, then a nanosecond later the sound of gunfire. Gerschiv ran out with his gravity hammer to find six soldiers lying dead on the ground, with a seventh soldier knocked out.

Mavis was using telekinesis to raise Johnny's body, which seemed to have a cut on its side.

"They tried to stab him when they saw me," growled Mavis, "How _could_ I? I'm so stupid…" she was about to run back behind the building, when she heard another soldier yell, "There!".

Bullets flew in their direction, Mavis turning into mist and forcing Johnny behind the wall to protect him just in time. Gerschiv threw himself behind the wall in time as well, using his gravity hammer to send shockwaves at the enemy soldiers.

Gerschiv suddenly spotted one of the soldiers run up, carrying what looked like a missile launcher.

"RPG!" he yelled, then ran farther back behind the wall. Mavis, however, didn't know what an RPG was, and was knocked back as the RPG hit the wall that was covering her.

Mavis flew back, slamming into the main wall. She got back up, wincing with pain, and turned into mist yet again, shoving Johnny's body behind the wall again, then charging the enemy lines.

There were yells, screams, and the sound of bone cracking. While Mavis had the soldiers occupied, Gerschiv ran out from behind the wall, smashing his gravity hammer into the skull of another soldier and sending him flying forty feet away. Mavis had already killed at least thirty soldiers, and wasn't stopping. More and more soldiers ran into the facility, each firing their weapons, but Mavis didn't care. Second by second, more and more soldiers fell to the ground, dead, until suddenly-

"STOP OR HE DIES!"

Mavis turned around to see a heavily decorated soldier, probably the chief, pointing a pistol at Johnny's skull. He had a gruff looking face, with a scar running through his cheek, and a limp on his leg.

Mavis stopped immediately, the remaining five soldiers still keeping their distance, but keeping their weapons leveled as well.

The chief smiled, "It was a bold move, you know. Attacking a nuclear outpost. But you failed. You've lost. After this is all over, I will offer you to the supreme leader as a gift, and he will give me anything I want."

As the chief was talking, Mavis was silently using telekinesis to activate the safety of the gun. Luckily for her, the chief was so busy with his speech that he didn't even notice it.

"And now, I finally have you cornered," continued the chief, "You won't be able to weasel your way through this one, _Dracula_."

The use of Mavis's last name jarred her. Perhaps it was her anger that someone was threatening her husband, or perhaps she remembered her father, being killed at the hands of people so similar to the chief. Point is, the next nanosecond, she had vanished and reappeared right next to the chief, snapping his arm and breaking his leg at the same time, while Gerschiv also sprang back into action, smashing the last five soldiers down with his gravity hammer.

The Chief howled in agony, dropping to his knees.

Mavis's eyes were tinged red with anger, "You _will_ tell me," she growled, "Where. Is. The. WEAPON."

The chief groaned, "It's...augh...GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" he roared, clearly trying to fight the hypnosis.

"Tell me." said Mavis, her eyes glowing even brighter.

"It's….It's….in….it's...It's in the CONFERENCE ROOM!" the chief yelled the last two words, and slumped back down, gasping, "It-It arrived in the mail today...I just didn't read it-"

Mavis didn't need to hear any more. She snapped the neck of the chief, and got back up. By now the entire facility was literally empty. Or at least she hoped so. Mavis used her extra-sensory perception to find the conference room, then levitated Johnny and guided Gerschiv to it.

Mavis didn't bother trying the doorknob. She kicked down the door and walked in. Inside, there was a large oval table with papers and notes scattered here and there. Gerschiv began rifling through some of the notebooks he saw.

"Multilateral Plasma Bombs...Railguns...Ion torpedos...these guys are inventing stuff out of star wars!" yelled Gerschiv, throwing the notebook against the wall. Mavis was also looking around the table, scanning each note that passed her vision.

Quantum Railguns...hypermolecular bombs...quark manipulators...then she saw it. It was a folder, beneath a notebook with details on a railgun, that was marked with a "Classified" stamp. Mavis opened it, taking out its contents. Sure enough, on the front was a picture of the weapon she saw at St. Kilda. On the next page was a letter. Mavis read it.

 _Chief General John B. London,_

 _21:58 pm_

 _Today, at 2325 o' nine, we tested the weapon with extreme success. Although only at 32% efficiency, weapon was still able to decimate 80% of Alpha 92. Relocating the weapon to -66.5 85.1 for security purposes._

 _Weapons Development, Letter #9203845_

"We have to go there, now." said Mavis, "Sooner or later they're gonna figure out that we attacked this place and they're gonna move the weapon again."

"Well how are we going to get there?" asked Gerschiv, looking up.

Mavis looked at him, eyebrows scrunched, "Did you really just ask that?" she said incredulously, "We're in an _Air Force_ base right now."

"Oh...right." Gerschiv went back to reading a notebook, slightly red after being humiliated by Mavis.

Mavis telekinetically grabbed a military duffel bag that was sitting in the corner of the room and began shoving as many documents as she could find into it.

"We don't want these in the hands of the military," said Mavis, "Might as well grab them for ourselves."

The two of them ran out of the conference room and began trudging their way towards the hangar, this time Mavis making sure to have Johnny telekinetically levitating right next to her the whole way.

When they reached the hangars, it was mostly empty, Mavis having to put a few stray military personnel to sleep. There were mainly fighter jets in the hangar, but at the very end, Gerschiv gasped.

"No way…" he murmured, "Is that what I think it is?"

Ahead of them was a solid black plane. It was very flat, and the back of its wings were chopped off at 90 degree angles. It was huge in width but tiny in height.

"What's so special about that?" asked Mavis, looking confused.

"That's a B-2 spirit stealth bomber," murmured Gerschiv, "It's supposed to be the most advanced bomber in the US arsenal."

"Well…" Mavis looked around. It seemed to be the only plane in the hangar that could hold more than two people, "Wanna try it?"

Gerschiv grinned, "Definitely."

A few moments later saw Gerschiv, Johnny, and Mavis all in the cockpit of the plane. Gerschiv was trying to fiddle with the controls, "Augh...what the...these controls are very different from the other planes we've used…"

After a full minute of attempting to start the plane correctly, Gerschiv turned to Mavis, "Dya think you could use telekinesis to force the plane to fly?"

At first, Mavis thought he was joking, but when she saw his face, she knew he was serious. "Uh...I've never tried doing that…lemme see."

Mavis concentrated, trying to use her telekinesis to force the plane to fly. She felt the gears, the engine, every sprocket and every wire that was in it. _Turn on._ She said. Nothing happened. _Turn ON_. There was suddenly a creak. Mavis became excited. She felt something move in the bomber. _TURN ON_. She practically yelled at the bomber in her mind.

There was a whir, some clicking noises, and a strange hissing sound that came out of the back of the bomber, and suddenly the display on the front of the bomber came up. Without anyone at the pilot's seat, the B-2 sped off onto the runway and took off.

Mavis watched the Air Force Base from the cockpit, "I did not think that that would work…" she murmured.

Gerschiv got onto the pilot's seat and grabbed the throttle, "Yeah, I got it from here." he said, testing out the throttle controls, "Woah...this bomber is much less tilt-sensitive than the other plane."

Mavis didn't answer, but knelt down next to Johnny and felt his pulse. It was weak, but still there. The cut one of the soldiers made to Johnny's thigh was still bleeding. Mavis hated herself. Whenever she got wounded, Johnny was always helping her. Healing her. Now she was sitting there, watching a person who's saved her life more than a dozen times almost at the brink of death, and not being able to do anything to help.

Mavis got up, her resolve solid, "Get us to the coordinates -66.5 85.1." she said, "And when we do, we're gonna find this supreme leader, and put a bullet through his skull."

 **Wow you actually got this far? Or did you skip into this chapter?**


	21. Failure

As the B-2 Bomber flew higher and higher into the air, Mavis began to grow more and more worried about Johnny. He was breathing, and his pulse was there, but that was little comfort to Mavis. She needed him to be awake by the time they reached the coordinates.

According to Gerschiv, the coordinates would lead them to a remote island off the coast of Antarctica. He seemed nervous about how could it would be, but Mavis didn't think much about it. She was fine with the cold, being a vampire.

If Mavis wasn't watching over Johnny, she was reading the notes they had stolen from the Air Force Base. It was mostly on random crap that she either didn't understand, or didn't seem possible due to the technological power needed to create the items.

Finally, as the B-2 flew over the East Coast, Johnny coughed, and began to try to get up, muttering words, "Ugh...what happened…?"

Mavis dropped the notes she was reading and reappeared right next to Johnny, "Johnny, calm it, sit down, we're going to where they're holding the weapon."

Johnny stared at her as if she was a ghost, "How long has it been?" he asked, "and what happened?"

Mavis sighed and sat down next to him, "Well, this is gonna be a long story, but hear me out…"

Mavis began to tell Johnny about what happened. How he got knocked out when the plane crash landed, how Mavis had used telekinesis to levitate him the entire way, and how they had managed to still infiltrate the military base, while killing off pretty much everyone there. She left out the part when she forgot Johnny, not wanting to remember that.

Johnny slumped back down, wincing as he felt the knife wound on his thigh, "So now we're flying the most advanced stealth bomber the US military has to Antarctica?"

"Pretty much, yeah." said Gerschiv from the pilot's seat, "But I was thinking, this is a bomber. Couldn't we just drop a buncha bombs on them?"

"That's what I was thinking," said Johnny, "But do we know how to?"

"Nope," replied Gerschiv, "But your girl certainly knows how to tell the bomber what to do, maybe she can do something about it."

Mavis blushed, "I can try…"

Johnny looked at his knife wound, then grabbed the duffel bag that Mavis and Gerschiv had stolen from the base and rifled through it, until-

"Ha, I knew they would have one of these." said Johnny, holding up a first-aid kit. He cracked it open, and grabbed the biggest band aid he could find and covered up the wound.

Mavis sighed, "I'm sorry that I couldn't help...you always treated me whenever I got wounded…"

Johnny looked shocked, "What? No, Mavis, don't feel guilty about that! It isn't your fault anyways…"

* * *

"So we're tracking their little bomber?" asked the man behind the desk, "They've taken the bait?"

General Clecius nodded, "Yes sir, we believe they will reach this location in no less than four hours."

"Good. I am looking forward to their visit. And the weapon?"

"It's ready to fire, sir. Our engineers managed to program it to recharge faster." said General Clecius.

"Very well. We will wait for their arrival. Prepare the weapon." said the man behind the desk, "Target Transylvania."

* * *

As they were flying over the Atlantic Ocean, Mavis walked to the back, where Johnny was leaning against the wall. He smiled when he saw her, "I always forget how beautiful you really are, you know, with everything that's happening…"

Mavis blushed, "Don't flatter me, I thought you were dead an hour ago."

The two of them kissed, then Johnny, trying to break the silence, said, "Do you think anyone out there is on our side anymore? Apart from Gerschiv?"

Mavis shrugged, "Probably. They're just too scared to act up. Why'd You ask?"

"I don't know...I just want to believe that someone out there supports us." said Johnny sadly, "And then there was the fact that I was completely useless during an infiltration of a nuclear silo-"

"Johnny!" Mavis punched his arm, "Don't say that, it's not your fault the stupid plane decided to knock you out…"

Johnny laughed softly, "Yeah…"

Out from the front, Gerschiv yelled back at them, "Oi, you two should get some sleep, I've set the plane to autopilot and we're gonna reach the facility in four hours."

"Alright, Gerschiv." called Mavis, then smiled to Johnny, snuggling up next to him. Johnny groaned, "The last thing I want to do is sleep…" he muttered, but eventually also felt his eyes closing…

A few hours later, Mavis opened her eyes to a loud beeping sound.

"Augh...wha-" she muttered, pushing herself up. In the cockpit, Gerschiv also woke up, "Ugh...oh it's just my alarm…" he murmured, turning off the alarm on his watch, "I made it ring when we were fifteen minutes out."

Johnny also opened his eyes, groaning and getting up, "Next time, tell us that you set an alarm," he muttered, "I thought that was a time bomb or something."

Gerschiv grinned, "Of course."

Below them, the South Atlantic Ocean was still stretching on. Gerschiv, Johnny, and Mavis watched the horizon, until-

"There!" yelled Gerschiv, pointing. Ahead of them, a desolate-looking island loomed out of the ocean. In the center, there was a little valley, with two peaks on each side of the island. And sure enough, in the valley, there was a low-standing compound, with a hangar bay on the sides of one of the peaks.

"Alright, I'm taking over the autopilot." said Gerschiv, grabbing the throttle and bringing the B-2 up to a height of 80,000 feet. By now, they could see the curvature of the earth easily. "Mavis, dya think you can tell the B-2 to drop the bombs when I tell you?" asked Gerschiv, guiding the B-2 towards the compound.

Mavis nodded, "I can try." she said nervously.

"Alright." said Gerschiv. The B-2 was now only a few seconds away from the compound, and Gerschiv slowly began counting, watching the monitor to his side, which showed what was directly below the B-2.

"Five...four...three….two….one, NOW!" yelled Gerschiv.

Mavis concentrated as hard as she could, DROP BOMBS was the only thing she thought. There was a hissing noise, as the bomb bay doors opened, and the sound of dozens of bombs dropping onto the base.

A few seconds later, the sound of explosions filled the air, and the display screen temporarily went white with all the flashes of light that were filling the screen. Gerschiv whooped, and Mavis grinned, telekinetically closing the bomb bay doors. Johnny, however, wasn't so convinced. After the explosions stopped, he looked at the display, and saw...a perfectly intact base.

"What the…" murmured Gerschiv, his smile fading immediately, "We didn't miss, did we?"

"We couldn't have…" murmured Mavis, "No, they must have some sort of thing preventing the bombs from reaching the base. Like...a shield or something."

Johnny was the first one to point out the real problem, "Well, uh, now they know we're-"

Finally, you've arrived.

The voice came onto an intercom that was installed onto the B-2. Gerschiv jerked the throttle, but the plane began to descend, "They've got remote control of the B-2!" he yelled, panicking.

It was a bold move, I will admit. But now, you've lost.

Mavis tried to telekinetically stop the B-2, but the B-2 wasn't listening to her anymore. The altitude indicator dipped below 20,000 feet.

And now, I will have what I truly want…

The B-2 dipped below 1,000 feet, and headed straight for one of the hangars. The hangar door opened without hesitation, and behind it, the three of them saw at least a hundred soldiers, along with tanks, humvees, and what looked like black-robed guards carrying spears. Johnny grabbed his two doom blades, still wincing at his knife wound, and Gerschiv grabbed his gravity hammer.

"When they open the doors, we charge. Understand?" asked Mavis, "We cannot go down without a fight."

Gerschiv and Johnny both nodded, both looking nervous but ready. There was a hissing noise, as the B-2 opened its back doors, then-

BOOM. Mavis vanished as she went supersonic, killing twenty soldiers in the time span of a millisecond, then running up a wall and using her telekinesis to throw the soldiers around. Johnny activated both doom blades and ran out. Whenever a bullet came near him, something installed in the doom blade forced his hand to move and block the bullet, so he was safe. He quickly skewered a few soldiers, before one of the black-robed guards activated an energy blade and began duelling him, both ruthlessly trying to kill the other. Gerschiv jumped out and used his gravity hammer to knock back an entire column of enemy soldiers, then ran behind a wall as bullets began to fly his way, before-

"Augh!"

A blue net, seemingly made out of glowing blue energy, flew out of nowhere and hit Mavis, tangling her up in it. Something about the net seemed to negate her vampire abilities, and she was helpless to fight against it.

Johnny, seeing Mavis trapped, with the guards closing in on her, didn't hesitate. He chopped off the guard's head with a strong swipe, then ran to Mavis's defense. He tried to get her out of the net, but whenever he touched it, it sent some sort of electrical current into his body. So he turned back to the soldiers, who were still running at Mavis, and swiped his blade it a large arc, driving them back.

"STAY BACK! Nobody touches her." he yelled.

The soldiers stood there, guns leveled at his face, but not firing, knowing that the doom blade would deflect their bullets.

"How touching…" a voice said. Mavis stopped struggling against the net, and Johnny watched as the soldiers parted, making way for a man. He had a scarred face, and by his side was George, looking tired and weary as ever, carrying a gun.

Johnny leveled his blade, not blinking an eye, "You must be the rumored supreme leader."

The scarred man laughed, "How intuitive...you amuse me, Johnny. Did you truly believe that stealing a B-2 bomber would not go unnoticed?"

Johnny shrugged, "We've done worse."

"How very confident you are. Whatever. Johnny, lay down your arms, and nobody has to get hurt." said the scarred man.

Johnny looked at him as if he were crazy, "You must really think I'm stupid if you think I'll actually do that."

The man smiled cruelly, "Oh, I do think you'll do that. After you see what will happen to your wife if you don't…"

With that, the man took out a remote from his belt. It had a red button in the center. He pressed it once, and Mavis screamed with pain as electricity coursed through the net, making her shake uncontrollably. The man pressed the button again, and more electricity flew through Mavis's body, resulting in even more pain and agony.

Johnny was helpless but to watch, as he couldn't touch the net.

"One more shock and your wife will be dead," Said the man triumphantly, "hopefully you choose the right decision now."

Johnny, glaring at the man, dropped his doom blades. What he didn't notice was Gerschiv, who was silently sneaking around the wall he had been hiding in, and was right behind the man now.

"Good," Said the man, "Now, let us-"

WHAM

Gerschiv flew out of nowhere, slamming the gravity hammer at the man, sending him flying thirty meters back into a wall. The remote was cracked and broken.

Immediately, the blue aura around the net went away. Johnny grabbed his doomblades at just the right moment, cutting through two guards and running to the net, pulling Mavis's barely-conscious form out from it.

Johnny grabbed Mavis by the waist, helping her up and pulling her until she was at the B-2. When she was safely in the cockpit, Johnny ran out with his doom blades to help Gerschiv when he saw the situation he was in.

Gerschiv, although landing a successful hit on the supreme leader, was quickly being overwhelmed. He already had two bullet wounds on his stomach and another one on his leg, without any cover at all. Even so, he still fought ferociously, knocking down soldier after soldier until finally, a black-robe guard stabbed him in the back. Gershiv's eyes widened, and he fell to the ground.

Then the soldiers and guards turned towards Johnny.

Without even trying to fight, Johnny ran back into the B-2, where Mavis was still sitting there, trying to stay conscious.

"Mavis, please, help me start the engine," begged Johnny, "come on, you can do it."

Mavis concentrated, trying to start the engine. The effort involved was enormous for her, but finally, there was a whirring noise, and the engine started. Mavis slumped over, unconscious, at that moment.

Johnny grabbed the throttle and pushed forwards, causing the B-2 to accelerate, and finally take off. Behind them, anti-aircraft fire sprayed the air, but thanks to the B-2's stealth systems, they were soon pretty much invisible to the facility's targeting mechanisms.

Johnny didn't relax until after they were 80,000 feet up. He set autopilot to a remote location in North Dakota, where he was relatively certain nobody would search for them there. Johnny didn't want to admit it, but the supreme leader won this time.


	22. Return Home

As Johnny flew over the East Coast of America, he kept an alert lookout. Since the supreme leader knew that he was probably trying to hide somewhere, he had probably alerted all the US military installations. Luckily for him, he was riding something that the US couldn't detect, so after a few minutes flying over the coast, Johnny relaxed a little.

Behind him, Mavis was lying on a pile of jackets Johnny had made for her. She was snoring lightly now, which calmed Johnny, knowing that Mavis was asleep and doing well.

Apart from caring for Mavis and watching the plane, however, Johnny was worrying. Worrying mainly about what would happen when the supreme leader decided to fire the weapon. He guessed that it would be an area of significance to either him or Mavis, so he began to write down possible locations that the supreme leader would target.

There was Transylvania, the one Johnny feared of the most. Then there was Hawaii, the place Dracula and Martha met. Bucharest was also a potential target, but it wasn't as big. Johnny sighed. No matter what happened, he wouldn't be able to stop the weapon from going off. It was inevitable. The only question was when and where.

As the plane flew over the border of Tennessee, Johnny sat back onto the pilot's seat, when he heard Mavis groan behind him. He turned around in time to see Mavis telekinetically grab the duffel bag, empty it, and throw up inside of it.

"Woah! Mavis, you okay?" Johnny ran over, patting Mavis's back to make sure she wasn't holding back anything. Mavis's eyes were disoriented, and she looked paler than usual.

"Yeah...I'm fine...did we escape?" asked Mavis, her head leaning onto one shoulder. Johnny nodded, "Yeah, we escaped."

Mavis's eyes cleared a tiny bit when she heard this, then she looked around, "Wheres...Gerschiv?" she asked, glancing around the cockpit.

Johnny shifted uncomfortably, "He...uh...didn't make it."

Mavis didn't react at all when she heard this, she just continued staring at the wall, "So many people are dead because of us," she murmured, "sometimes I think that turning ourselves in is a good idea…"

Johnny grabbed her arm, "Listen Mav, Gerschiv died for a reason. He wanted us to live. For his sake, we have to stay alive. And anyways, if we turned ourselves in, we would die, and they would still have the weapon, it serves no good to anyone."

Mavis nodded, "So...where're we going?"

"To a remote location in North Dakota, I chose a very isolated spot, it's thirty miles from the closest city." replied Johnny, "We can lie low there until we figure out something else to do."

"Okay," murmured Mavis, "But...what about the weapon? It's still going to fire."

Johnny sighed, "We can't stop it this time Mav, it's going to fire."

Mavis continued staring at the wall, her expression unchanging. Johnny watched her nervously. She seemed to have changed alot since he got knocked out. "Listen, Mavis, is there anything wrong? You can always talk to me, you know."

Mavis laughed quietly, "We're international terrorists, both of our families are dead, and we're riding a stolen state-of-the-art military bomber. There's alot of very wrong things in my life right now."

"You know what I mean," said Johnny, "You haven't been the same since I woke up from getting knocked out."

Mavis rubbed her shoulder, clearing uncomfortable, but decided that hiding it would do no good at that point, "When you were knocked out, there was a, um, situation."

Johnny raised his eyebrows, "Really?"

"We were entering a building in the Warren Air Force Base, and...um...I forgot you," said Mavis, nervously looking at Johnny, "I'm really sorry, I felt really bad about it later. When they found you, and I realized I had forgotten you, I thought that they would k-kill you, and it would be all my-"

"Hey, hey, you were in a stressful situation," said Johnny, "It's not your fault, you were just...distracted."

This didn't comfort Mavis, "That's exactly the problem! What if something actually happened, and you died…"

Mavis began to rock back and forth lightly, "And then...Gerschiv died today...what if you also die? Then my life would truly have no meaning…"

Johnny kissed Mavis, "You worrying this much about me shows nothing but the fact that you love me, Mavey."

Mavis seemed to calm down a slight bit after that, "I do love you," she whispered, "but I'm just really, really scared of losing you, especially after Gerschiv…"

Johnny hugged Mavis, "Don't worry, I'm right here…" he murmured, gently kissing her again.

Just then, the display of the B-2 bomber began beeping. Johnny walked over quickly, and looked at the display, "We're nearing North Dakota, expect to land soon." he called back to Mavis.

As the B-2 began its descension into North Dakota, Johnny glanced out the window, and saw a sea of green grass, low-standing hills, boulders, and trees that grew close together. It was a beautiful sight. Johnny sighed sadly. It looked like a good place to stay permanently.

Mavis was still too weak to get up, but she was able to sense the beauty using her extra-sensory perception.

The B-2 landed in a relatively open field. The landing was rough but successful, and bumpy thanks to the landscape. Johnny helped Mavis get out, holding onto her and making sure she wouldn't fall the entire way.

Johnny had chosen a small, old pasture that had been abandoned a while ago. Johnny had landed the plane right underneath a grove of trees that covered it up relatively well. Johnny had planned to use the B-2 as shelter, but he managed to find an even better area within the grove of trees. There was a small patch of sand, just large enough for about four people, which Johnny rolled out two sleeping bags on. The sand would make for a decent mattress.

As Mavis settled down on the sand, Johnny remembered something. Taking out his phone, he turned on the camera, then turned to Mavis, "Wanna take a selfie?" he asked.

Mavis stared at him. With everything that's been happening, that was about the last thing she thought of. But at the same time, doing something as normal as taking a selfie seemed to have its own appeal. Mavis smiled, "Of course."

The two of them took a selfie of themselves, and afterwards Johnny added it to his new folder of photos that he had labeled as "Outlaw Photos".

That night, Johnny passed time by jogging around the field with Mavis. Since Mavis was still weak, she could only run at a regular human pace, rather than her usual vampire speed. But she was recovering quickly. By the end of the night, she managed to break the sound barrier after alot of effort.

After jogging, the two of them snuggled close together, holding onto each other as they fell asleep...

* * *

In the facility at the Aux Isles, far from where Mavis and Johnny thought where it was, the man behind the desk was growling, "I cannot believe it," he said, "Two hundred and fifty soldiers, my personal guard, and myself. And they still escaped."

George was standing across from him, "They're a resourceful pair, sir. And anyways, it wasn't a complete failure. We killed their accomplice, Gerschiv.

"Hmph," the man behind the desk rubbed his back, "And what of Mavis and Johnny? Where are they now?"

"We have no idea sir," said George, "But we believe that they have flown into North America, due to a slight radar detection over Washington."

The man behind the desk sighed, "That information doesn't help us, it only tells us which country he's hiding in...anyways, is the weapon ready?"

"Yes sir." George nodded frantically.

"Good," said the man behind the desk, "Fire immediately."

* * *

Mavis usually had bad dreams, with everything that's been going on, so it was only natural that she was saying to herself _no dreams, no dreams, no dreams_ the entire time while she was falling asleep.

Naturally, she had a dream.

She was standing outside Hotel Transylvania. Looking at the hotel made her only nostalgic, since she knew that she would probably never return there.

Suddenly, Mavis began to move. Her body began to get pulled towards the hotel. Soon enough she was flying through corridors and rooms, until she stopped, at the basement entrance.

The basement entrance looked terrible. It had burn marks, bullet holes, everything. There were broken drills and sledgehammer lying around the ground everywhere. Clearly, the feds have been trying to pry this door open.

Mavis flew right through the basement entrance, and down the ladder. When she reached the bottom, her eyes were met with a massive supply of relics. She had only seen a few relics in her life, but Dracula had always told her she was too young to see his "secret collection". This must've been it.

Dozens of strange necklaces, rings, staffs, glowing swords, a weird orb-like object. Everything. Mavis remembered her dad's final words.

 _Promise me that you will live_

He would've wanted her to have these. Mavis was certain of it. These could be the key to defeating the military's technology. Was this what it came down to? Magic versus technology?

Suddenly Mavis flew out of the basement, until her point of view was over the hotel. Something was wrong. Mavis didn't know what until she saw it. The sky was tinged blood-red. Unusually blood-red.

What was wrong?

Suddenly, a beam of light came into view in the distance, flying towards the hotel. Mavis could only watch. She knew what it was already. The laser collided with the hotel, and there was a bright flash of light…

* * *

Mavis woke up, gasping. Johnny, who was already awake, scrambled over to her, "Mavey, you okay?"

Mavis looked around. She was still in the field in North Dakota. "We have to get to hotel transylvania as soon as possible." she said, "The feds haven't gotten through my dad's basement door yet. He told me that he enchanted it to be literally indestructible."

"Woah, woah, woah," Johnny held his hands up, "Slow down, what's happening."

Mavis took a breath of air, then began, "They fired the laser, it collided with hotel transylvania, but I also saw where my dad's basement was. He had always hidden its location from me, thinking I wasn't ready. But now I know where it is. He said it could only be opened by a vampire. There are a ton of things we could use in that basement. Magic artifacts, relics, things that could change the course of what's going on."

Johnny frowned, "Well, first off, we don't even know if that's real since it was a dream…"

Mavis frustratingly waved her hands, "It wasn't a dream! I know that for a fact! It didn't feel like one, and vampire dreams are probably different from human dreams!"

Johnny held up his hands in surrender, "Alright, alright, we'll get going to transylvania. But if it's not toasted by that laser, then we're heading straight back. We're risking detection right now."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Fine, but I'm telling you, it was real."

Johnny nodded, "Alright, and if it was real, then we'll just go and take the relics as well."

The two of them quickly began loading their stuff back onto the B-2, Johnny marking their location so they could come back afterwards, assuming they weren't caught. Mavis had by now completely forgotten about the electrical shock that she endured and looked more confident than Johnny had ever seen her in the last twelve hours. She must've really believed her dream.

In a few short minutes they were ascending quickly, and soon had reached the 80,000 feet mark. Johnny predicted that they would arrive at Transylvania in only two hours. As Mavis watched the land unfold beneath her, she straightened up, "Alright Johnny, ready to go back home?" she asked.

Johnny smiled grimly, "Of course."


	23. Magic

As the B-2 soared over another valley, Johnny began to look around, watching for the signs of the superlaser hitting the hotel. At first, he was skeptical, since what Mavis had claimed to witness was only a dream, but eventually he began to see a massive, jagged crack in the earth. Johnny looked around, and saw more cracks, each one leading to the same area. Johnny's mouth dropped right open when he saw the pure destruction the weapon had brought.

At 100% energy capacity, the weapon had destroyed not only transylvania, but also Bucharest and pretty much any forest within a hundred miles. Mavis watched the landscape, her mouth also open with horror. This was her home, the only place she truly knew.

Johnny watched Mavis nervously. When he had witnessed the destruction that the weapon had brought on Santa Cruz, he had completely broken down mentally. Now Mavis was going through the exact same thing.

"Mavis, you okay?" asked Johnny, looking back from the pilot's seat.

Mavis nodded, "Let's just finish what we came here to do." she said, trying to keep her voice neutral.

Johnny nodded, and steered the plane farther in. Around him, a thick white gas seemed to surround the area. Johnny cursed. He had almost forgotten about the chemical weapon which was also released with the laser.

"Hey Mavis? We have a slight problem…" said Johnny, watching the gas that was covering the landscape below them. Luckily for them, the B-2's displays went right through the gas, not even showing it on the camera.

Mavis saw it as well, "I'll try to clear a path using telekinesis when we land, but I don't know if I'll be able to hold it for that long…"

Johnny watched the gas nervously, "You know, maybe it's a better idea if we go back-"

"No," growled Mavis, "We're doing it. No matter how dangerous it is."

Johnny looked at her, surprised by her sudden change in attitude.

Mavis sighed, "I'm sorry...I just didn't think that I'll ever see a time where the hotel didn't exist…I didn't quite appreciate it when I lived there."

"It's all right," said Johnny, refocusing on the display monitor, "we'll go in, there's gonna be no feds hanging around because of all this gas anyways."

As the two of them slowly descended over the area, Johnny located Hotel Transylvania on the display monitor. He flipped a few switches, and the B-2 began to descend slowly over a relatively flat and empty portion of what was the cemetery.

As the B-2 landed, Johnny started by keeping the monitor on and watching it. Mavis prepared to release a large burst of telekinetic energy at the doorway when it opened, and used her extra-sensory perception to sense which way she would need to go. Thanks to Dracula's magic, Hotel Transylvania remained relatively intact even after the laser struck it.

Johnny began to count down, "Five...four...three...two...one...NOW!" he pushed the button that released the back door, and as it opened, Mavis released a burst of telekinetic energy. Behind the doors, there was a thick white gas that lingered eerily around the entire plane, but because of Mavis, there was now a nice, solid tunnel of air that they could safely walk through.

Mavis and Johnny got out of the plane, Mavis leading the way. Whenever they got close to the edge of the air bubble, Mavis would simply wave her hand and extend the bubble. Behind them, the gas moved back into their original positions and covered the entire B-2 with itself again.

Mavis and Johnny walked into the back entrance of the hotel, Johnny recognizing the pool and the place where he had told Mavis about the Taj Mahal. Inside, the gas was less prevalent, Mavis finding it much easier to push away the gas. As they made it into the main lobby, even Johnny was impressed at how well it held out. Apart from a few broken tables and a knocked-over painting, the entire lobby was quite intact, unless you count the thick white gas that was lingering over it now.

Mavis descended a flight of stairs, making a series of left and right turns in the catacombs of the Hotel. She was going purely by memory from the dream and by using her extra-sensory perception to intuitively sense her way through it.

Suddenly Mavis stopped. She had heard someone ahead.

"This gas is really annoying you know, even these gas masks don't appear to work on it. I can barely breathe right now." said one voice. There was then the sound of a drill, then the sound of something snapping.

"Augh, whatever this thing is made of, it's not breaking. Go and tell your client that." said the same voice.

Mavis silently signalled to Johnny, and the two of them crept their way to the next doorway, where Mavis turned around and saw two men, wearing specialized gas masks, each holding a drill and trying to drill their way through the basement doors.

Mavis, without even hesitating, snapped her fingers. Both men fell asleep right there, slumping over on the ground.

Johnny looked over the corner and grinned, "Nice going Mavis, come on." Mavis cleared the entire room of the gas and walked to the center. Sure enough, it was the basement door. There was a Dracula Family Crest carved into the stone door, and all over it were marks of people attempting to get through it. The two people who Mavis had just sent to sleep were both holding cracked drills.

"So, uh…" Johnny glanced at Mavis, "Go and do your thing."

Mavis looked at the door. She didn't know what to do, her dad had never told her how to open the door, only that it needed a true vampire to do so. Mavis shrugged, grabbed the handle, and opened the door. It was literally that easy. The stone was unusually lightweight, and Mavis didn't feel any resistance at all.

Johnny stared at her, open-mouthed. "How…?"

Mavis hushed him, "It's vampire magic-cky stuff, don't ask me."

The two of them clambered down the ladders that led down into the basement underneath the door. The door closed itself above them. When Johnny and Mavis reached the bottom of the ladders, Johnny murmured, "Woah…"

They were in a huge circular stone room. All around the walls were racks, holding an entire assortment of relics and items that either looked innocently simple or wicked and deadly. Staffs, gemstones, rings, necklaces, weapons, crystal orbs, a jar of golden-colored gas, an olive branch. It looked like something out of a Harry Potter book.

Mavis walked over to the other end of the room, where there was a table. On the table were stacks of dusty paper, and a single notebook. On the front of it were the words, _For Mavis, From Daddy, to be delivered at my Death._

Johnny walked over to where she was, still admiring the collection of items in the room. When he saw what Mavis was holding, he stopped, "Mavis, its your dad...you should probably read it."

Mavis nodded. She didn't know what her dad had written for her that was so important as he had to be dead in order for her to be allowed to read it. She opened the book.

 _My dear Mavis,_

 _If you are reading this, it means that I have passed, and that you have received my dream. Yes, it was me who sent you that dream of this place. Mavis, the reason I left you this letter is because I want to warn you of something that I never had the heart to say myself. As I am writing this, right after your wedding with Johnny, it pains me to say this, but you were meant to marry someone else._

Mavis stopped there, her eyes wide. Johnny was staring at her as if she was a ghost. Mavis looked back at him, "I swear, Johnny-"

"No, it's not your fault, I know that you love me," said Johnny, "continue reading, please."

Mavis looked back at the letter and continued,

 _Far beyond when you were born, Martha and I became close with a group of humans. This was before Martha's death, obviously, but I was still weary of them. As our friendship grew, however, I threw away our differences and embraced them completely as friends. Several generations later, after this group of humans had passed through many generations, you were born. And when you were, two humans, by the name of Tim and Alyssa, told me that they would be honored if their child, Ben, would marry you. I told them that it would be an honor, already being very close friends with them. But eventually, they became paranoid. They thought that I would not keep my promise, that I was somehow trying to harm them. They grew so paranoid, that one day, they organized a mob and raided our old home. That was how Martha died._

 _After we fled, Tim and Alyssa fed their child on stories that it was actually me and Martha who started the fire, in an attempt to burn the entire village down. Ben believed these stories. He thought I was trying to hide you from him, and he pledged to hunt me down. That is the true reason I built the Hotel. To hide you from him. There were stories about Ben. Stories about him obtaining an elixir of immortality. I fear that these rumors may not be completely false. But then now, after you married Johnny and declared it openly to the world, Ben knows that you have truly turned your back on him. He will come after you, trying his hardest to kill you. He will stop at nothing, rest at nothing. Because of this, I spent the last century collecting and constructing these relics, to help you and Johnny survive, and maybe even fight back, against Ben. Remember to stay strong, Mavis. I know your emotions will probably be mixed after reading this, but I know that you truly love Johnny. Trust him, stay with him, never leave his side, for he is in just as great of danger as you are._

 _Love,_

 _Daddy_

 _P.S. attached below are the instructions and notes on the functions of all the relics you find._

Mavis finished reading the letter and flipped through the rest of the notebook. Sure enough, there were notes documenting every artifact in the room.

Johnny stood there awkwardly, "So...uh...now I see why _someone_ wants to kill us so much…"

Mavis looked more worried than frightened, "Johnny, I have _no_ idea who the hell this Ben is." she said.

Johnny looked at her, cocking his head, "Of course you don't, Mavey! I know that you love me, we're zings! It's just…wow…"

Mavis looked at all the relics, "So...if we are to take all these...I mean, we can't fit them all into the duffel bag, can we?" she asked. Johnny looked at the duffel bag, then at the countless staffs, rings, and other relics on the racks around the room. "Nope." he said.

Mavis looked through the notes again. There had to be some way to store all these. Her dad must've done something. Then she found it. At the bottom left hand corner of the last page, there were a few words scrawled in messy handwriting:

 _For compact storage, concentrate_

Mavis concentrated, and sure enough, _pop_. Next thing she knew, she was carrying a suitcase. It was small and very lightweight. Around her, the relics had all vanished. Mavis gaped. No way the suitcase had what she thought it had inside of it.

Mavis opened the suitcase, and when she and Johnny looked inside, she said, "Woah."

There was a massive chamber inside the tiny little suitcase, as if there was an entire closet compacted into it. All the relics were stored in there. Johnny gaped as well, "Wow...now that is true magic." he said. Johnny reached inside the suitcase. Sure enough, it was as if an entire closet had been shoved into that.

"We can figure out what to do with it later," said Johnny, "but we have to get going now, before the feds realize that we're here."

Mavis nodded, and grabbed the suitcase. The two of them ran over to the ladders and began climbing up it again, Mavis going first to open the door. After climbing out of the basement, Mavis and Johnny ran over to the B-2, where Mavis delicately placed the suitcase in the corner as if it was a priceless piece of art. Soon enough they were on their way back to North Dakota.

* * *

 **:O**


	24. Advantage

As Johnny steered the B-2 over the border of South Dakota, he set the autopilot on and walked to the back, where Mavis was reading the letter that his dad had left her with. When she saw him approaching, she smiled, "It's always great, knowing that I ended up with someone as good as you, and not with someone as crappy as this Ben."

Johnny laughed, glad that Mavis was alright, "So...I'm guessing that Ben is the supreme leader? That would make the most sense at least. It would explain why he's trying to kill us so much."

Mavis nodded, "Yeah, that's what I was thinking as well, but why is he so obsessed with building these weapons? It makes no sense. Why doesn't he just kill us and just be done with it?"

Johnny shrugged, "Maybe he wants to kill all monsters, so he thinks that building all those weapons would help him accomplish that."

"Whatever...when we land, we should take a few days off to test out the relics," said Mavis, "I was reading through some of the notes, and I gotta say...some of this stuff's pretty impressive, even for my dad."

"Mmm," murmured Johnny, "Alright...but after that let's get back to hunting Ben, I think he'll find out very soon that we managed to get through that door."

"Right." said Mavis. She was already missing having a situated home. But at least now she was living her dream. She _had_ seen alot of the world by now. From Russia, to America, to some random islands on the Atlantic Ocean, to even France.

Just then the B-2 display began beeping. Johnny walked over to it, watching the display, "We're near the landing zone, starting descension now."

He flipped a few switches, and immediately the plane began to descend slowly. Johnny was starting to master the art of landing a B-2, but even this time, it was kind of rough, Mavis having to balance the B-2 yet again when it was about to touch the ground.

The place they had landed was the exact same location that they had stayed last time. The two of them quickly cut the B-2's engines underneath the sheath of trees that they had hidden it under last time, and right as Johnny was about to get out of the pilot's seat, he noticed something.

"Uh, Mavis...this thing's literally at 0.3% fuel." he said nervously, "I think this bomber's out of juice."

Mavis sighed. She knew it was inevitable, but the B-2 had offered her a kind of security while flying that no other plane had offered. She sighed, "Hopefully there's a fuel store to raid nearby then."

Johnny nodded, and patted the back of the pilot's seat fondly, "I liked this one," he said sadly, "I would rob a few fuel canisters to get her back in the air.".

Mavis punched his arm, "We aren't doing that, remember what happened when Gerschiv tried that?"

"Right." said Johnny, wincing as he remembered Gerschiv. He still wasn't used to him not being around, "Come on, lets test some of those relics."

Mavis and Johnny walked out of the B-2, carrying with them the suitcase. They quickly rolled out their sleeping bags on the same patch of sand as before, then the two of them sat down. Mavis opened the notebook, which was scrawled with vampire dialect on every page.

"Ugh...I'm rusty on vampirical, but I can still read some…" said Mavis, "This," she reached into the suitcase and grabbed a short, three-foot staff, "is supposed to be a weapon….of some kind. Wait a second…"

Mavis grabbed both ends of the staff and pulled outwards. Immediately, the staff expanded until it was seven feet long and glowing with a faint red aura. It vibrated lightly with energy, and Johnny murmured, "Wicked…".

"Since you already have your doom blades, I think I'll take this one." said Mavis, retracting the staff until it looked like an innocent 3-foot metal stick, and placing it back into her belt. The next item was an oddly-shaped ring. Mavis squinted at the dialect, trying to read through the vampirical text, "Wait a second…"

Mavis placed it onto her finger, and waited. Nothing happened. She growled in frustration, "I really do suck at vampirical...I can't read what it says after that."

With the ring still on her finger, Mavis continued reading down the notebook, grabbing an orb of what looked like intricately-woven gold. "Orb is meant...material duplication?"

Johnny's eyes widened, "Duplication? That means that we can refuel the B-2!" Mavis grinned, "Yeah, and we can also duplicate food and water…but how does this thing work?"

Mavis grabbed a fistful of sand and placed the orb on top of it. At first, nothing happened, then the orb began to move. The gold indents on the orb began to rotate quickly, until a few seconds later, the orb opened up and dropped another pile of sand right on top of the pile already there. Mavis grinned, "Now we can refuel at least."

For the next two hours, they continued testing out the relics. Most of the relics were left untested since Mavis wasn't able to read out vampirical very well, but some were. There was a necklace that created a shield around the wearer, a weird glass panel that could create artificial technokinesis (The ability to manipulate and create electronics), which Mavis and Johnny were excited about using on the B-2, and a weird rubber ball that glowed red whenever danger was near. Right now the rubber ball was a hazy blue, which Mavis had read to interpret as, "Hidden but searched for.", which was good.

But that was the extent on what they knew about the relics. Everything else was either too advanced in Vampirical for Mavis to read, or simply not written about at all. Dracula seemed to have rushed through his notes when he was writing them.

That night, Mavis and Johnny refuelled the B-2, using the replication stone, and then tried to use technokinesis. At first it was confusing on how to work it. The glass panel just sat there blankly, until Johnny noticed a tiny switch on the top of it. After pressing the switch, the glass glowed red in recognition of itself being turned on.

Mavis cleared her throat, and for the fourth time, said, "Install Air to Ground missile systems." The glass panel was silent for a second, then a high pitched, electronic-sounding voice came back from it, "Of course, Miss Dracula, the missile systems have been installed. What else may I do for you?"

Mavis glanced at Johnny, who also had his mouth open. "Here, you should probably do it, being more techy than me." said Mavis, passing the technokinetic panel to him. Johnny was surprised with this, and held it as if it were a priceless treasure, which it was.

"Okay," said Johnny, "Ummm...Install automatic machine guns."

"What would you like the barrel size to be, Master Jonathan?" asked the panel right back. "Um...seven millimeters," said Johnny, "Armor-penetrating too."

"As you wish, Master Jonathan," said the glass panel, "According to my calculations, the B-2 spirit stealth bomber that you have acquired can have its stealth systems upgraded. May I perform the upgrades based off of my calculations?"

Johnny glanced at Mavis, who shrugged back at him, "Sure." said Johnny, "Just make it quick."

"Of course," said the glass panel, "It will be ready in an hour."

By then, it was 7:00 at night, so Mavis and Johnny decided to go for a night jog around the field. Mavis flew around the field, lapping Johnny 47 times before he finished his first one. After Johnny's first lap, and Mavis's 48th lap, they were both exhausted, and headed back to their little hideout in the grove of trees, and sat on the sleeping bags. They tried to crack the Vampirical language for a few of the relics they weren't able to figure out. Mavis tried everything she knew. She levitated the relics using telekinesis, breathed on them, threw them, everything. But nothing happened. After doing this for about half an hour, the glass panel whizzed over to them and told them that their B-2 was finished with its upgrade.

Johnny and Mavis walked out to see the B-2, and when they did, both of them said, "Wow."

The B-2 had a complete makeover. It looked sleek and shiny, and was kind of larger. On the interior, the complicated-looking controls had been replaced with a better interface. The window itself had some sort of special glass that allowed them to see the surrounding area as if it were daytime.

"Where are the guns?" asked Johnny, looking around.

"They're right here," said the glass panel, "Watch."

Johnny looked at the B-2, as it suddenly opened two small hatches on the top and two other hatches on the bottom. Machine guns popped out of all four hatches. "These machine guns are 7 millimeters, just as you wanted, armor-penetrating. The air to surface missile are right there." The bottom of the B-2 also opened, and a missile pod popped out of that hatch, "Plasma missiles, able to disintegrate anything from stainless steel to carbon fiber."

Johnny grinned, "Nice going, techno." he said, "And what upgrades did you add?"

"I've added a cloaking device, that turns your B-2 literally invisible when you activate it. I've also added a small shield around the B-2 that makes it pretty much invulnerable from surface-to-air missiles and bullets. The engine has been replaced with an antimatter core, which produces much more energy than the average engine. Oh, and I've installed an AI system onto the B-2 as well."

Mavis was listening to all of this with her mouth hanging open, "What's antimatter?" she asked.

"Antimatter is the opposite of normal matter. More specifically, the sub-atomic particles of antimatter have properties opposite those of normal matter. The electrical charge of those particles are-"

"Okay, techno, we get it." said Johnny, and immediately the glass panel stopped talking. That's when Johnny suddenly had an idea, "Hey Mavis, we've never named the bomber, have we?"

Mavis shook her head, "No...we should though."

Techno immediately began to speak, "I can arrange for a name to be painted on its side, what would you like it to be?"

Johnny glanced at Mavis, "You decide." he said. Mavis sighed. She didn't know what to name it. "How about...Death's Bane. For the people who died so we could live." she said.

"A very wise choice, Miss Dracula," said Techno, "It will be done in approximately 11.98249 seconds." with that, Techno whizzed off, and a few seconds later, _Death's Bane_ was printed in silver letters on the side of the B-2.

Johnny smiled and kissed Mavis, "Good name," he murmured, "Techno, do you have a limit?"

Techno turned towards him, "Of course I do. The Vampiric Core that Master Dracula had installed on me is currently at 3%. I will require rest in order to recharge."

Johnny nodded, "Get some rest, you need it."

"Thank you, Master Jonathan." Techno immediately went blank and dropped back onto the ground. Johnny grabbed it and placed it back into the suitcase.

That night, Mavis and Johnny didn't do much more. They kissed, made out, and eventually, fell asleep, comforted by the fact that they had finally managed to gain an advantage over their enemy.

* * *

"They WHAT?" roared the man behind the desk, slamming the desk so it shook.

General Clecius shook, clearly frightened, "Sir, when we went to attempt to continue to crack open the door, we found that our two workers had been put to sleep, a tactic often used by the vampire."

"We must assume that they have gotten through, and have attained the relics. They have an advantage now!" yelled the man.

"Sir, with all due respect, we don't even know for certain if they actually got through. The workers may have simply gotten tired-"

"Quiet." said the man behind the desk, and General Clecius immediately fell silent, "we must assume the worst has happened, and that they have the relics. If this is the case, then they have an advantage over us, since their magic is more powerful than our technology. We will wait for them to make the first move. Keep all of our facilities on high alert."

General Clecius nodded, "Yes sir." he said.


	25. Goals

The next day, Mavis woke up to the sound of birds chirping. Her eyes opened, and the first thing she saw were the leaves above her, creating beautiful columns of light that illuminated where she and Johnny were lying. Johnny still had his hand wrapped around her, and was snoring lightly.

"Oh, you're awake." Mavis jumped as she turned around and saw Techno floating a few feet away from her, "I was just checking on your bomber," he said, "It's ready to fly."

Mavis nodded, "Thanks Techno. Have you been up to anything else?" she asked.

"Of course I have been. Due to your current situation of hiding, I have just scattered all radio waves within fifty miles. I do not believe anyone has communications apart from you and Johnny, whom I have created a special bubble of radio safety for."

Mavis smiled lightly, "You know, you're an interesting little fellow. Are you electronic?"

"No, of course not. Dracula invented me before computers were created. I do not know what I am, only that I have an extensive knowledge of modern-era technology and that my job is to serve you and Jonathan only."

Mavis nodded, "Keep an eye out for Johnny, tell him I went on a jog and I'll be back in a few minutes." she said, then went supersonic on the spot, whizzing around the field and kicking up dust everywhere.

A few moments later, Mavis went back behind the grove of trees, and Johnny was up, talking to Techno. "And the B-2 is ready for take off then?" he asked.

"Yes, it is. According to my calculations there is a 94% chance that the supreme leader moved bases." said Techno, "So I would advise against going to the same place again."

Mavis intervened, "Johnny, don't you think it's kind of rushed? I would think that the supreme leader is waiting for us to come to him. He would want us to make the first move this time, since he has no idea where we are."

"Miss Dracula has a point, there is an 87% chance that the supreme leader has set up some sort of trap for you." said Techno.

Johnny thought about this for a moment, "Fine, but then what do we do? Wait until they find us?"

Mavis shook her head, "We'll wait until they do something. Maybe they'll give away their position. But I feel as if we need more time to plan. They would expect us to do something like this."

Johnny sighed, "Fine, but in two days we need to move, or else we'll be sitting ducks. Techno, make sure to have the B-2 ready at any time." he said.

Techno nodded, "Yes, Master Jonathan. May I also set up security measures to ensure your protection?"

Johnny hesitated, "Sure." he said, "But don't make them annoying."

"Of course, sir. Beginning security procedures now." Techno began to whiz around, generating something with magic. Soon enough, three six-foot automaton guards stood over them. They were armed with machine guns, and looked like iron man suits. Techno began to making buzzing noises, "Batteries at...0.5%...automatic shutdown initiated…"

Techno dropped back onto the ground, recharging. The three automatons didn't talk or move, they simply stood there, watching Johnny and Mavis. Mavis telekinetically brought Techno back into the suitcase, and Johnny looked at the automatons. "Erhm...you guys can go and, uh, patrol stuff." he said.

The automatons turned around and marched over to the edge of the grove of trees, standing sentry over _Death's Bane_ and their hideout.

Johnny and Mavis spent the rest of the morning trying to figure out what the rest of the relics did. Mavis finally managed to crack some Vampirical Text ("Oh! Now I remember what that means!"), and pulled out a strange brown, rubbery orb. She looked at the brown orb, and said, "Show me the Earth."

Immediately, the brown orb began to change colors. It expanded, until it was the size of a yoga ball, and the colors began to form shapes. Shapes that looked like-

"Are those the continents?" asked Johnny, watching the ball take shape. "Yeah," murmured Mavis, "It's amazing."

Soon enough the orb was completely full. It floated a few feet above the ground, and Johnny rotated it, looking around. At their exact location, there was a tiny green dot, and scattered around the world were small, blue dots. "What're those dots for?" asked Johnny, pointing at the blue ones.

Mavis was thinking as well, then looked back at the notes. "Um...it says here that they are areas of danger, and that they are adaptive towards our situation…"

Johnny looked at the globe, marking where the blue dots were. There was one in Moscow, one in Afghanistan, one on an island off the coast of the Arctic, and a last one literally in the middle of the pacific ocean.

"These must be the places where the facilities are!" he exclaimed, "I mean, the facilities are the most dangerous places in the world for us, right?"

Mavis wasn't so sure, "Hmm...where's the one in St. Kilda then?"

Johnny's smile faded, "Oh...good point." he said, then went back to staring at the sand.

"But," Mavis continued, "Some of these areas probably are the facilities, it's just that they vary in degrees of danger due to how important they are."

Johnny nodded, "Sure...lets just put this away for now. About that glowy necklace thing…"

For the next thirty minutes, Mavis and Johnny tried to make the crystal necklace do what it was supposed to do, but without being able to read the notes Dracula gave Macis, it was impossible.

As the afternoon drew near, Mavis and Johnny replicated some ramen noodles that they had looted from the duffel bag, along with oreos and dried mangos. Mavis was really getting used to human food now, even kind of enjoying the oreos now. As the two of them laughed and talked, they failed to notice the spy drone that was flying several hundred feet above them.

* * *

A few hundred miles away from them, the Pentagon was in absolute chaos. Military officials had gathered in the main conference room, where their spy drone was being aired live. The man at the front was talking.

"This is the only time we've come close to finding them. They haven't come out of the grove of trees too much, but when they did, we used the length of their shadows to find their heights. And guess what? The heights match perfectly with Mavis and Johnny."

"So what? There are probably plenty of people out there in the world who are equally tall as the two of them! This is American soil we're talking about, it isn't a warzone. You can't just fire a tomahawk into North Dakota based off the shadow height of two random individuals!" roared another man.

"Two random individuals, who happen to be hiding in one of the most no-name places in America, have never come out from under those trees, and who also appears to have what resembles a B-2 bomber! Doesn't that sound sketchy?" yelled a woman from across the room.

"We only have a 43% chance that it's them," said the same man, "We shouldn't risk it. We may kill one of our own citizens."

"And we may also kill the two most wanted terrorists since 9/11!" yelled the woman, "What do you not get? This is war! People will die, whether or not it's on our soil."

"Let's put this argument to rest," said the leader, "All in favor of doing a missile strike." He raised his hands, along with several other people. "All against doing a missile strike." Several more hands were raised, making the leader have to count. In the end, however, the majority thought a missile strike was the best move.

* * *

As Mavis swallowed another pack of oreos whole, Techno suddenly automatically woke up. "Master Jonathan and Miss Dracula, you must get to the B-2 immediately."

Johnny stared at him, "Why?"

"I have detected a non-radio communication wave a few hundred feet above us. It seems as if the military is using a drone to bomb us."

At first, Johnny stood there, frozen, before Mavis knocked some sense into him, "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get moving!" Johnny nodded and grabbed the sleeping bags, stuffing them into the duffel bag. Mavis grabbed her suitcase and began running towards the B-2, right as-

 _BOOOOM_

Behind her, the grove of trees they were hiding in got disintegrated. The area around the B-2 was also completely in flames, but the shield system on the _Death's Bane_ seemed to have protected it completely.

Luckily, Mavis, Johnny, and Techno were all within the shield range. Two of the automatons Techno had created made it, the last one being disintegrated as well. Mavis pulled Johnny into _Death's Bane_ , while Techno and the two guards clambered in behind her.

 _Welcome on board, due to the current situation, I have calculated a 99.8% chance that survival can only be accomplished by takeoff._ Said the AI as they entered, _Activating instant thrusters._

The _Death's Bane_ flew upwards like a helicopter, except faster, just as another missile exploded on the shields, causing the bomber to shake a little. Mavis and Johnny ran to the cockpit, where Johnny saw the predator drone, along with the spy drone, flying above them. Johnny yelled, "AI, open fire on those drones, now!"

The automatic machine guns popped out, blasting the spy drone and predator drone to shreds, both of them falling through the sky and exploding.

 _Targets have been eliminated_. Said the AI.

Techno inserted himself into a small slot on the wall, where he slid in perfectly. There, he began to recharge again. The guards stood at the back, standing sentry over the door.

"Fly us in a random direction until we decide where to go." said Johnny, quite calmly, to the AI.

 _As you wish._ Said the AI right back. The _Death's Bane_ began to fly north, over Canada, and activated its antimatter engines, flying at up to speeds of Mach 5. It was only then when Mavis truly realized how upgraded the B-2 had become. There were screens on the walls to either side of the cockpit, each showing weather, pressure, air temperature, along with the radar, which wasn't picking up anything at the moment.

Johnny, however, was fussing over what to do next. "What now?" he asked, pacing the cockpit, "We just got openly attacked by the US military. They probably knew that we were there for a long time."

Mavis calmed him, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Lets go back to St. Kilda, interrogate some people, and find out where they're keeping the weapon. Then we'll go there, and finish off Ben and the weapon.

Johnny sighed, "Alright...AI, bring us to St. Kilda, undetected."

 _As you wish, Master Jonathan_. Said the AI, and the _Death's Bane_ changed course, heading east, straight for St. Kilda.

* * *

"I see…" murmured the man behind the desk, "They must have acquired such technology from the relics they took from the basement…"

General Clecius sounded a little strained, "Sir, if you would only let me check on the facility personally-"

"Enough." the man behind the desk waved his hands, "You will remain at the Aux Isles, in case they somehow got wind that the weapon was located there. However…" the man behind the desk waved his hands, and a hologram appeared on the table. It showed a regular military battleship. "This is the USS Zumwalt, a very advanced military destroyer. In about two hours, it will leave port from Miami and make a patrol run across the East Coast. You and George are to capture the destroyer and bring it back to the facility at St. Kilda."

General Clecius looked confused, "Why, sir?"

"The USS Zumwalt has a particularly important person on board," said the man behind the desk, "A man by the name of Ashar Libney. He is an Afghanistan scientist who made a surprising discovery, in which he created a material just as powerful as the stone Dracula had enchanted his basement with. You are to bring him to me. If his formula gets released into the public, our plan will not succeed. Too many people will live."

General Clecius bowed his head, "I will carry out your orders, sir."

* * *

Several miles off the coast of Miami, the USS Zumwalt sped at 33.5 knots through the water. The crew was relaxed. They were operating the most advanced, state-of-the-art destroyer ever built, after all. Nothing could touch them. Nothing could harm them.

Right after they passed their third checkpoint, off the coast of New York, however, the crew detected the sound of helicopter blades coming from all around them. The captain, James A. Burgandy, frowned. He hadn't received reports of any air traffic. As the crew watched the skies, they saw at least a dozen helicopters fly out from the distance. They were military helicopters alright, and James had no idea where they came from.

"Code Yellow, we have unverified military helicopter in our zone," said James into the intercom, "Load and prepare all anti-aircraft guns, do not fire."

The military helicopters approached, not stopping. Next to the USS Zumwalt, her sister ship, the USS Freedom, suddenly stopped moving.

"USS Zumwalt to USS Freedom, what is the problem?" he asked the captain of the USS Freedom through a phone. The other captain didn't respond. Suddenly, the USS Freedom exploded, literally blowing up down the center and severing the entire destroyer into two pieces.

"Red Alert! All stations, open fire!" yelled James. The USS Zumwalt's anti-aircraft guns began blazing, but it was already too late. They only managed to crash a single helicopter before the rest began to drop off soldiers onto the deck of the USS Zumwalt.

"Stations A, B, C, and D, I want our garrisons all deployed," yelled James, "They're on the main deck, keep them out of the ship!"

As fighting began to erupt below decks, James knew that the boarders outnumbered his men at least four to one. He knew just by the sheer number of soldiers who were pouring down from the helicopters. He began to make SOS signals, calling for help from any nearby military personnel.

What they didn't know was that help was already there, and was only flying about 60,000 feet above them.

* * *

 **ya so I'm in the middle of finals right now as I'm writing this (1/18/2018), so tomorrow (1/19/2018), I'll update the story again.**


	26. Friendship

Johnny and Mavis were only about an hour into their two-hour predicted flight, when the AI suddenly spoke up, "SOS signal detected approximately 58,973 feet below our current position."

Mavis looked at Johnny and shrugged, "Maybe it's something we should take a look at."

Johnny grumbled something and walked over to the display at the control panel. One of the screens showed the camera view below them. Sure enough, there was a ship there...a military ship.

"What the…" murmured Johnny, watching the display. There were small specks moving along the deck of the ship, which must've been people, and bright flashes of lights. There was fighting right below them.

"AI, what's that ship?" asked Johnny, still watching the screen. Next to him, Mavis had walked up and was also watching the display. She had never seen a military ship with her own eyes, and had only heard stories about them from Johnny.

The AI responded swiftly, "USS Zumwalt, guided missile destroyer, US Navy, 193 personnel and crew, due to their current situation and the scans I have made, they appear to be under attack."

Johnny watched the ship. He should leave them alone. It wasn't his fight, after all. But he had to make sure of one thing.

"AI, zoom in on the attackers." said Johnny. The camera turned and zoomed in on the soldiers who were firing on the deck of the ship. Johnny's mouth dropped. Sure enough, the soldiers were undoubtedly sent from Ben. He could recognize the body armor from anywhere.

Mavis also noticed it. She grabbed Johnny's arm, "Maybe we should help…" she murmured, "After all, if they're attacking a US ship, then it _is_ helpful to us if we find out why, right?"

Johnny nodded. He had already decided to bring the plane down lower. "Bring us down, AI," he said, "But keep us cloaked."

"As you wish, master Jonathan." said the AI, and immediately the _Death's Bane_ began to descend slowly. On the display, the battle became less and less blurred. As Johnny watched, he noticed that the attackers had stopped firing. The door at the side of the bridge suddenly burst open, and a group of tattered and beaten-looking crew members came out, being dragged by the soldiers. They were led to the front of the ship, where Johnny noticed a few helicopters that had landed right on the deck. There, someone began to walk down the line of crew members, seemingly asking them questions, before shooting each of them in the head.

The sight sickened Johnny. He had to do something. Beside him, he felt Mavis shift as well. "AI, bring us down until we're right on top of them." said Johnny.

The _Death's Bane_ flew down until they were only hovering a meters away from where the crew was. By now, only about two dozen crew remained, a line of dead sailors in their path. And by then, Johnny and Mavis had both realized who was shooting them. It was none other than General Clecius.

"Yeah, this is something big." said Johnny, "They wouldn't send General Clecius on anything small…"

 _Bang_. General Clecius shot another crew member right in the face, who fell down, blood spewing out of the bullet wound.

"AI, can you enhance the audio?" asked Johnny. "Of course I can." said the AI, and the audio immediately went up.

"...you are lying. Ashar Libney is on this destroyer, and if you don't tell me where he is, I will kill you." General Clecius was saying.

"Who's Ashar Libney?" asked Mavis, "I've never heard of him."

"Neither have I." said Johnny, "Want to open fire? We can't let too many people die."

Mavis growled. She hated making these types of decisions. Decisions that people would probably die over. "Alright...AI, OPEN FIRE!"

Immediately, the four guns on the front of the _Death's Bane_ opened up and began firing. The soldiers on board the ship, caught off guard, were blown to pieces. But General Clecius's doom blade automatically blocked all the bullets sent his way. The entire plane de-cloaked, and two more guns popped out on the bottom and also began firing.

Johnny and Mavis, along with their two automaton guards, jumped out from the back doors. The two automatons went right into actions, firing their guns at the enemy soldiers. Only about six crew members were remaining, and they had scrambled behind one side of the bridge to avoid the crossfire.

"Get to the helicopter dangit!" Johnny heard General Clecius yell, "Get to the-"

 _BOOM_

The four helicopters that were on the deck exploded as the _Death's Bane_ disintegrated them. General Clecius was forced back behind one of the gun installments on the destroyer as a column of bullets narrowly missed him.

Behind the side of the bridge, Mavis rematerialized into vampire form, scaring the crap out of the six crew members hiding there.

"Shhhh," said Mavis, "Don't worry, I'm here to help. Here, take these." Mavis threw them the duffel bag she had taken from the Warren Air Force base. It was filled with guns and grenades. The crew members each quickly grabbed a gun, and began to fire at the enemy soldiers. It was only then when Mavis heard a voice behind her, "Well, well, well…"

She spun around, and saw herself face to face with George. Immediately, she hissed and threw a punch right at him, but George was surprisingly fast, dodging it, and opening fire with his pistol. Mavis turned to mist, telekinetically throwing the crew members behind a crate on that end of the ship.

George growled, taking out his own doom blade and charging Mavis, who had turned back to vampire form due to the lack of concentration. Mavis dodged the first two swipes, but George finally managed to lightly cut her leg, making her stance fall slightly, then grabbed her neck with his other hand, bringing his blade up to Mavis's neck.

Mavis struggled, but it was futile. The arm she was being held with was made of metal, and was far stronger than a human arm. For a full twenty seconds, she struggled, before suddenly-

"Augh!"

George relinquished his grip on Mavis, who turned back to mist and flew back to the group of crew members. One of the crew members had hit George in the back with a bullet. But Mavis was confused. Why didn't George kill her? She was at his mercy for a full half minute. He could've easily chopped off her head right there and then.

The rest of the crew members also opened fire, but George had managed to hurl himself behind a crate again. Mavis turned her attention back to the main battle, which was going on between Johnny and the rest of the soldiers. One of the automatons which had accompanied them to the battle was already a smoking pile of metal on the ground, but the other one was still firing his gun, bullet holes all over his body.

Mavis, using her super speed, ran right into the fray, killing each and every soldier with brutally efficient energy. On the other end of the ship, there was a loud hissing noise, as a submarine suddenly appeared right next to the USS Zumwalt. There, General Clecius's men began jumping overboard, then swimming to the submarine. General Clecius himself also jumped overboard, and got into the submarine. Mavis spotted George as well, clambering into the submarine entrance. With another eerie hiss, the submarine vanished beneath the waves.

There was silence, as Mavis and Johnny watched the waves, then Johnny turned to the crew, "Hurry! Get to the bridge, see if you guys can track that submarine!"

The crew was frozen for a second, before a white-bearded man in a black uniform, who must've been the captain, thundered at them, "Get to it, we have nothing better to do."

The crew scrambled back into the bridge, with Mavis and Johnny following them. There, one of the crew members pressed a few buttons next to a display. A radar image showed up.

"Nothing. Those bastards probably have stealth tech." said the crew member. Johnny growled under his breath. Great. Now he really messed up by blowing his own cover.

The captain walked up from behind them, "Who are you guys anyways? I really owe you for saving our necks out there."

"My name's Mavis, this is Johnny." said Mavis, gesturing to Johnny. There was silence, then Mavis paled. She had forgotten about how they were international terrorists.

The captain stared. The crew stared. Johnny butted in, "Look, I know everyone thinks we're a terrorist, but you guys have to believe this. We aren't the bad guys. Those guys who just attacked you, _they're_ the bad guys. They've been after us as well."

The captain watched him, then said, "I believe you."

Johnny blinked. That was just about the last response he was expecting. The captain extended his hand, "James A. Burgandy, captain of this ship."

Johnny shook his hand hesitantly. A few of the crew members were looking at the captain as if he was going insane. The captain then also shook hands with Mavis.

"So tell me, if you truly aren't international terrorists who want to destroy mankind, then what are you guys doing?" asked the captain, "You might as well tell me."

Johnny looked at Mavis, who shrugged back at him. Johnny sighed, then began to tell his story. About how it all began with their trip to Veld, and how they were attacked by the military for no apparent reason. How they had survived and had fled, going from city to city, looking for answers, and how they had ended up finding the USS Zumwalt. He left out more personal information, such as the relics, or Dracula.

There was silence after the story was told, then the captain said, "You know...most of my colleagues would think that I'm crazy for saying this, but do you guys need a ride right now?"

Johnny immediately replied hastily, "No, that's not necessary, our plane is fine right now."

James chuckled, "That's more than just a plane...It's more technologically advanced than anything I've ever seen."

Johnny smiled, "Thanks, but we've got to get going. Tell the government what happened, but don't say anything about us." he glared at the rest of the crew, "got it?"

The crew all nodded fervently. A few minutes later, Johnny and Mavis were back on board the _Death's Bane_ , and were talking to Captain James.

"So, who's this Ashar Libney who I heard about?" asked Johnny. The captain shrugged, "I honestly have no idea. Whoever they were after, he wasn't on board this ship.". Johnny could tell that James wasn't lying, but he still didn't like it. So many crew members dead, for someone who wasn't even there at all.

Johnny glanced at his watch again, "Listen, we really gotta go now-"

"One last thing," the Captain handed Johnny a scrap of paper, "This is my emergency number. You can reach it at anytime, anywhere, with or without a signal. If you need me, dial this into a phone and I'll be notified."

Johnny nodded, tucking the paper into his pocket, and silently making a mental note to never use it. He knew from people like George that acting friendly didn't necessarily mean that you were friendly.

Back at the cockpit, Mavis was sitting at the co-pilot's seat, thinking. _I should be dead right now_. Was the only thing crossing her mind. Because she should be dead. George should've killed her. Why didn't he?

A number of possibilities crossed her mind. Perhaps his boss had ordered him not to kill her, or perhaps he was trying to simply capture her. But then, there was the possibility that George's loyalties were changing…

Mavis shook her head. She can't allow thoughts like this to cloud her judgment, especially in times like this. Behind her, the cockpit door opened, and Johnny walked in. He sat down next to her, and punched a few buttons. Soon enough, they were rising from the damaged USS Zumwalt, and ascending high up into the air, until the destroyer went out of view.

Johnny watched Mavis, "You seem...troubled."

Mavis shifted uncomfortably. She didn't want to talk about this right now, but she needed someone to say it to. "When I was helping the crew members fight, I had a little run-in with George."

Johnny nodded. He had also seen George go into the submarine, but he didn't see him anywhere else.

"We fought, and George kind of overpowered me…." said Mavis, "But...he didn't kill me. Why didn't he?"

Johnny looked surprised, "You should be happy you weren't killed! What's the problem?"

"I don't know...I felt...I felt as if George didn't kill me because he didn't want to. I think he's changing." murmured Mavis.

Johnny looked at Mavis, "Come on, Mavey, you know that George can't be trusted, he's the reason all of our supporters are dead!"

Mavis sighed, "I know, but if he truly was against us, he would've killed me. It didn't feel right…"

Johnny kissed Mavis, "Listen, you're alive, and that's the only thing that matters to me right now. Get some rest, we'll fly to a random location to hide, since George and General Clecius both know where we were last."

Mavis nodded. She was already getting sleepy. "Alright, Johnny…" she murmured, falling asleep at the co-pilot's seat.

Johnny sighed, glad they were back in the air. Back in the safety of the _Death's Bane_. "AI, get us to an uninhabited island. Scan the area and make sure there are no human life forms before landing." he said. He fell asleep a few minutes later, thinking of what they would do once they touched the ground again...

* * *

"You WHAT?" growled the man behind the desk angrily, "They fought you off?"

General Clecius nodded, clearly afraid, "The vampire and her pet barged in in the middle of our search for Ashar. They are the reason the remaining crew members were able to rally."

"But then...Ashar is still alive, and he knows that we are searching for him. This complicates our situation tenfold!" yelled the man behind the desk.

"But what of the captain? Couldn't we just kill him-"

"No, fool," said the man behind the desk, "The captain is a military official, we aren't permitted to touch him. No, we must be cautious. Move the weapon from the Aux Isles to Clipperton Island. I don't want that pesky vampire and her human friend to find out about it!"

General Clecius nodded, "Yes sir."

"Good. Bring in George as well, I have an assignment for him..."


	27. New Home

Captain James A. Burgandy sailed back to port on that same day under emergency power generators. After docking in New Jersey Bay, he paid a private company to rebuild his ship, using his own money to do it. The reason for all of this was because he didn't want the government to know what he was up to. James believed Johnny and Mavis's story. It would explain so many things: The random earthquakes that destroyed Santa Cruz and Transylvania, the odd activity of the Pentagon, and the attack on his own ship just a day earlier.

James knew he was supposed to be on patrol duty for the next week, so he continued sending out all-clear signals to Navy Command, telling them that he was alright. James's reduced crew of 6 men were all willing to go through with him as well, fueled by the deaths of their comrades at the hands of the soldiers. As repairs began on the USS Zumwalt, the repair crews informed him that the repair would be complete in three days. That was enough to avoid government detection, so James should be fine. He was lucky that only Johnny and Mavis were the ones that recieved his SOS signal. If anyone else had received it, he would've had to explain the attack, Johnny and Mavis's presence, and the deaths of 90% of his crew. It would've been a nightmare.

Well, at least now he could put the USS Zumwalt to some good use. The ship had never seen any true combat. Maybe now that James knew of a true threat, he could use the ship to fight. But that would only be possible if Johnny had told him where the facilities were located. Understandably, Johnny didn't trust him enough to tell him, but James was still frustrated. The night after he ordered the repair to begin, he opened a book with detailed accounts of military facilities that were spread out around the world. There were so many possibilities. There were military installations everywhere. In the Bermuda Triangle, St. Ureic, the Swiss Alps, Bhutan, even the Aux Isles. James sighed with frustration. He would have to wait until the government made a stupid move and gave away their position. Then he would move in to strike.

* * *

Johnny woke up to the sound of Techno's voice. "Wake up, Master Jonathan and Miss Dracula, we have arrived at your destination."

Johnny's eyes flew open. Next to him, Mavis was also getting up, pushing herself into a sitting position and looking around. Johnny looked out the cockpit windows, and was nearly blinded by the bright sun. All around them, sparkling blue water and green forestry grew. He could see the fish swimming around in the water next to their landing site, and a nice shade was being cast by the palm trees on the beach.

"Where are we…?" asked Johnny, still stunned by the beauty of the island. Mavis was also gaping. She had never known such beauty even existed.

"You are on an undiscovered island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, near the equator. Your current coordinates are 18.45 -35.308. Not a single human has ever set foot on this island."

"Wow…" murmured Mavis, looking around. "We should name it...you know, since we discovered it." said Johnny.

Mavis thought for a moment, "Lets name it...Paradise."

Johnny winced, remembering the postcard that Mavis always kept in her back pocket. The postcard that showed the two of them where Martha and Dracula had met. It was a bittersweet memory. But the name was certainly fitting. Johnny smiled, "Couldn't have come up with a better name." he grinned.

Mavis laughed softly and got up, "C'mon, lets go and check out the island." she said. Techno followed the two of them out, leading them on a tour around the island. He had already made scans of the island, and knew pretty much everything about it.

The entire island was about 18 square feet. The vegetation wasn't as thick as it looked, with Mavis and Johnny being able to navigate through it easily. There was pure white sand surrounding the entire island, with rocks scattered here and there. At the center of the island, there was a small, clear lake. According to techno, the only way in or out was through a plane, thanks to the storms that surrounded the entire island. Johnny and Mavis could even see the rough waves and storms in the distance, several miles from the island.

After their tour, Mavis turned to techno, "Can you make sure nobody finds this island? Like...do your magic."

Techno bowed, "Of course, Miss Dracula. I have already scrambled all radio waves that come remotely near this area."

A few minutes later, after Johnny made sure the _Death's Shadow_ was hidden well underneath a sheath of trees, and after Mavis unloaded all the gear telekinetically, Techno suggested an idea.

"May I offer my opinion?" asked Techno, whizzing around, checking on the _Death's Shadow_ functions to make sure they were alright after the battle.

"Sure." said Mavis neutrally.

"I believe this area is a good place for a headquarters. It is very small, very isolated, and has good weather year round." said Techno.

This idea struck Mavis. It was hard to believe that she would ever have a permanent home ever again. But now that she thought about it…

Johnny was also pondering it, "Well...I guess it would be an alright idea."

Techno continued speaking, "If you allow me to, I will build a hidden Headquarters underground for the two of you to hide in when you aren't fighting. It would be good to have an established base of operations."

Mavis finally gave in to her feelings, "Alright, techno, get working then."

Techno bowed and immediately whizzed off, creating raw materials out of nowhere and buzzing around, "The HQ will be ready in approximately three hours," he said, "But I'm afraid that after that I will be out of commission for a day."

Johnny nodded, "It's fine, just do it." he said. For both Mavis and Johnny, the idea of having an established home again was heartwarming.

As Techno worked, Johnny and Mavis each took a shower separately in the lake, cleaning off the filth that accumulated on them. Both of them were covered in dirt, dried blood, and all sorts of other nasty stuff that got on them.

After that, Mavis and Johnny sat on the shore, planning. Techno had generated them a map of the entire world, and the two of them were now using it to see where they would strike next.

"What if we went back to the Pentagon?" asked Mavis, "they wouldn't expect us to do that again."

"Yeah...I guess that is an option," said Johnny, jotting it down in his notebook, "But how about some other areas of government importance? Like, how about the White House?"

"Mmmm…" Mavis thought, "I don't think the president would be as involved on this type of stuff...but sure. Go with it."

"Alright…" murmured Johnny, jotting down the white house as well, "Anything else?" he asked.

"What do we have so far?" asked Mavis, telekinetically floating a bit of sand in front of her, then throwing them back into the ocean.

"Moscow, St. Kilda, Pentagon, White House." said Johnny, reading down the list of items he had added to the notebook.

Mavis shrugged, "That's enough for now, we can attack each one consecutively. For now, though…" Mavis looked out at the sparkling blue water, and the peaceful beach, "Let's stay here." she said.

Johnny sighed, "I miss the hotel…" he murmured. Next to him, Mavis nodded solemnly, "I know...but we lost it for a reason. Because a bunch of bastards decided to destroy it. Let's make sure to return the favor." she said.

* * *

The scientist ran into General Clecius's office, panting, "Sir! The weapon is ready to fire, as you requested!"

General Clecius stood up, "Good. Fire it at North Dakota. Maximum efficiency," he said.

The scientist nodded, "Yes sir!", then ran off.

General Clecius sat back down, pondering. He had ordered the laser to be fired at North Dakota because he believed Johnny and Mavis were hiding there again. But deep down, he knew that he was probably wrong. They weren't dumb enough to go back to the same place they got attacked at.

"General Clecius."

The general jumped as another voice came from the doorway. This time, it was George, standing straight. "I see you have fired the weapon again."

The general grunted, "Our best estimations show that they are hiding there."

"Hmph," George flicked a bit of dust of the side of the table, "So you decide to fire a weapon of mass destruction at your own country, risking millions of lives for the deaths of two terrorists who you don't even know for certain are there?"

"It is a necessary risk, and if we miss, then it will encourage them to come out, in fear of us using it again on innocent lives." said the General, waving his hands dismissively.

"You know," said George, reaching into his pockets, "Your usefulness has truly run out, old man."

General Clecius whipped his head around, his eyes bulging at the insult, when he saw George pointing a gun at him.

"What the-"

 _Pffft_

A soft popping noise came out of the gun as George fired the suppressed pistol, killing the general instantly. George then grabbed his body and opened the side window, where there was a cliff drop-off into the open ocean, and threw his body down the cliff.

George then closed the window and cleaned off the blood, then left the room as if nothing had happened. _Now, I will be the one to replace him._ He thought, a smile appearing on his face.

* * *

"Wow…" murmured Johnny, as he stepped into the newly-built headquarters. The entire place was decked out. There were blast doors with a passcode (M vis&J0hnny), and inside, there was a TV, computers, and a bed for both of them. Techno had ensured both of them that he had made their signal encrypted to prevent people from tracking them.

The first thing Mavis did was crash on the bed and sigh with content, feeling the soft mattress underneath her. Johnny, meanwhile, grabbed the TV remote and turned the TV on, looking for any news that might relate to them. After a while, he found it.

 _North Dakota now suffers an earthquake as well, creating a massive, 20,000 square mile sinkhole. This is the third major earthquake in the past month, and geologists are still failing to come up with an explanation on why they are occuring in areas with such little tectonic movement. Casualties estimated to be at 40,000_

"Mavis, they fired the weapon again!" cried Johnny, "They fired it at North Dakota."

Mavis sat up immediately, "What? Why North Dakota?" she asked.

"They must've been gambling," said Johnny, "They thought we would return to North Dakota to hide."

Mavis growled, "Great, that's another 40,000 people dead because of them. Maybe we should attack sooner. Maybe the day after tomorrow?"

Johnny nodded reluctantly. Although he didn't want to fight, he didn't want more people to die either. "Alright." he said. Mavis slumped back down onto the bed, looking grumpy. Johnny suddenly had an idea.

"Mavis, come on, I want to show you something." said Johnny, pulling Mavis up from the bed. Mavis looked at him, "What?"

"C'mon, I wanna show you something you'll probably like." said Johnny. The two of them walked up through the blast doors and went outside. By then, it was 10:00 pm at night. When Johnny and Mavis walked over to the beach, Johnny grinned, and Mavis murmured, "Wow…"

In front of them, the entire beach was illuminated blue. Johnny was gambling on whether or not the beach would have bioluminescent plankton, and in this case, it did. The waves that the water made glowed bright blue, creating beautiful patterns in the water.

"See, I told you you would like it." said Johnny proudly, looking at Mavis's face. Mavis kissed Johnny and put her head on his shoulder, "I wish we could live this moment forever…" she murmured.

Johnny nodded sadly, "If only wishes came true…" he murmured.

* * *

Captain James was excited. The weapon, the same weapon that Johnny had told him about, was fired again. This time at North Dakota. Lucky for him, his crew were good at calculus, and were able to use derivatives to calculate the rate of angle change of the laser beam. After triangulating the beam of light fourteen times, they finally focused on a single island. Clipperton Island was an isolated island off the coast of Spain, and that's exactly where Captain James's crew had calculated where the weapon would be.

James immediately sent a message to Johnny. Johnny had given him his phone number. It might've seemed like a security risk at first, but Johnny's phone actually had three layers of encryptions on his cellular signal and another five layers on his cellular footprint. In the message, James explained to Johnny where the location of the weapon was and how he got it. Because of Johnny's encryptions, the message had an estimated loading time of five hours. James growled in frustration, then called his crew.

"Get the USS Zumwalt ready to leave port tomorrow." he said, "Make sure all ammunition and control systems are ready."

His crew all saluted him, "Yes sir!" they all said.

* * *

 **:o**


	28. Pain

The next morning, Mavis woke up first. It was still dark in the headquarters, since Johnny had turned off the lights a while ago. Mavis got up and telekinetically put on all her clothes, then checked the time. 4:28. Great. She was up early again.

Mavis walked out the headquarter entrance and walked over to the beach. It was still illuminated by bioluminescent bacteria, but was fading, with the sun coming out in about an hour. She watched the beach, enjoying the view, before seeing something on the sand. It was a phone. Johnny must've dropped it last night as he was showing her the beach.

Mavis telekinetically grabbed the phone and opened it, checking to make sure it was alright. Sure enough, everything seemed to be working, except he had a new text message…

Mavis frowned. Who could text them? She opened the IMessages app and looked at Johnny's list of contacts. Sure enough, the one at the very top had a new message on it, and his label was "Unknown Number". Isn't that great.

Mavis opened the text and looked at the message. It read, quite plainly:

 _Found location of weapon, Clipperton Islands. Heading out on 1/20/2018. Do not respond. Move in. I found location through calculus and triangulation._

 _-CJAB_

That was big news, for both Mavis and Johnny. Immediately, she turned to mist, flying back into headquarters with supersonic speeds, and woke up Johnny.

"Wha…" Johnny turned around, then saw Mavis. "What is it Mavis?"

Mavis handed him the phone, with the IMessages unlocked. "You dropped this last night, so I found it and saw this."

Johnny read the text message, his eyes narrowing as he read through the whole thing. He sighed, then got up. "Alright...we'll use the _Death's Bane_ , but we won't go in until we're certain it's not a trap. We don't want another George."

Mavis winced, remembering George, then said, "Alright, lets get cracking then."

An hour later, after the two of them finished a nice meal of smoked salmon and rice krispies, they packed up the relics and grabbed the sleeping techno, and put them all in the back of the _Death's Bane_.

They were soon flying above the clouds again, and activated the cloak to avoid detection. Johnny didn't want to get caught even before getting to the facility.

"Mav, what're we gonna do if they do have the weapon there?" asked Johnny, "Do we go in full attack or do we sneak in? I mean, we've done both before."

Mavis shrugged, "I mean...I guess stealth, since if we go in full attack, then the people at the facility would try to move it."

Johnny nodded, "Yeah, that's true. But what would captain James do if he shows up?"

Mavis turned to him, "You mean if he shows up and tries to kill us or if he shows up and helps us?"

"Well...both." said Johnny glumly, staring at the ground, "I mean, if he was trying to kill us, he wouldn't lead us directly to the weapon. So if the weapon's there, then he was probably trying to help us."

Mavis thought about this for a moment, "Well, if he tries to kill us, then we kill him. Nice and simple. But if he tries to help us, then we got ourselves a new accomplice. Hopefully."

Johnny nodded, remembering how George had helped them so much, gathering a small army for them, only to wipe them all out.

"Either way," said Johnny, "If the weapon's not there, we run. If it is, then we go in, destroy it, and put an end to the damn thing."

* * *

George was happy. He had finally been promoted to Supreme Leader's First Hand, meaning he just took General Clecius's place. He was now standing in front of the supreme leader, who was sitting behind a desk.

"Tell me you've at least tracked them." growled the supreme leader, "Tell me that your men aren't as incompetent as they seem."

George shivered in the cold, "Sir, we didn't manage to get a track on them, but we believe he is somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean, we're sending out search parties right now."

"Very well. Keep this facility on high alert, even though that doesn't seem to change anything…"

George nodded, "Yes sir."

* * *

As the _Death's Bane_ flew further south, the AI informed Mavis and Johnny that they were one hour away.

"AI, take us to elevation 70,000. We want to avoid detection." said Johnny, "And also, activate all stealth system."

"As you wish, Master Jonathan." said the AI, and immediately Johnny heard soft whirring and clicking noises, as all the stealth systems on the ship activated.

In the back of the cockpit, Mavis tapped Johnny's shoulder, "Come and look at this." she said, showing him the rubber ball that they had taken from the relic room in the hotel. It had now changed from blue to solid black. "According to the book, that means 'approaching danger'." said Mavis.

Johnny sighed, "Well, we knew what we were going into when we decided to go. There's going to be danger."

Mavis nodded grimly, "Alright…"

Suddenly the AI perked up, "In order to speed up the waiting time, I have decided to accelerate to Mach 5."

Instantly, the view on the plane window narrowed, and suddenly they were whizzing through the Atlantic Ocean faster than they could imagine. Within thirty minutes, they had reached the facility.

"All stealth systems are still in full functionality," said the AI, "this is Clipperton Island, as requested. Should I run a scan of the area?"

Johnny was watching the island below them on the display screen. He saw no facility, "Yes, search for any hidden buildings, and search especially for large amounts of accumulated energy."

"As you wish, Master Jonathan." the AI began scanning the area. In the back, Mavis had already prepared for battle, holding her staff. Johnny felt his belt, feeling the two doom blade hilts.

"Scan complete, a massive underground facility has been located. Over 3,000 human life forms reside inside. Large energy source detected at the area indicated on the display screen."

On the display screen, a red dot appeared on the map, then the entire map tilted sideways, showing the area underground.

"AI, can you print us out a map of this place?" asked Johnny. "Of course I can." said the AI. A few seconds later, a map printed right out of where the CD player was. Johnny looked at the map, until he found the entrance. He nodded to Mavis. The weapon was definitely there, only it could create such a large accumulation of energy.

Mavis and Johnny threw on their stolen scientist lab coats, and Johnny ordered the _Death's Bane_ to go down until it was literally hovering over the entrance. The _Death's Bane_ flew down, quickly descending, and soon enough, Johnny was able to see the island clearly. It looked quite peaceful for a place that housed something so destructive.

Soon enough they were only about twenty feet over the entrance. Johnny could see the steel doors, and the two guards who were standing watch over it. They carried what appeared to be plasma guns.

Johnny whispered the countdown, "One...two...three….NOW!"

The back door opened and Johnny and Mavis jumped out. Behind them, the doors closed again, and the _Death's Bane_ vanished from sight, its cloaking systems hiding it. Mavis used telekinesis to slow both of their falls, and when they landed on the ground, they immediately sprang into action.

The two soldiers, caught off guard, didn't even have time to utter a word. Johnny quickly skewered one with his doom blade and Mavis whacked off the other one's head with her staff.

Johnny stood guard as Mavis telekinetically threw the bodies into the ocean, then began to try to open the door using telekinesis as well.

"Augh...this door has a weird lock system...wait...there we go…"

There was a click, and the door swung open. Behind it, there was a staircase leading downwards. Johnny closed the door behind them, as Mavis led the way. As they made their way to the bottom of the stairs, Johnny made a turn and saw another series of corridors. Scientists were milling around, talking and pointing at their notes and research, while guards stood sentry.

Johnny took out the map he brought with him and looked at it, "Um...it should be this way then…"

The two of them made a right turn, walking past a long corridor that was lined with offices and glass-paned windows. Mavis looked through one of them and saw a scientist injecting a goat with a glowing green serum. She shivered. This place smelled like death.

"Hey, you two!"

Mavis and Johnny turned around, Johnny stuffing the map into his pocket, as another scientist ran up to them, "We need some spare scientists in room G11, Burke says that he needs some help with gene injection."

Johnny nodded, keeping a cool straight face, "We'll be on it." he said, "And...uh, which way is room G11 again?" he asked, as the scientist began to walk away.

The scientist turned back to him as if he was crazy, "It's down the hallway, take two rights."

Johnny sighed with relief. At least it wasn't a complete detour, room G11 appeared to be en route to the weapon.

Mavis and Johnny went down to room G11, following the scientist's instructions, and finally reached an office. On the door was a plaque labeled, _Burke's Laboratory._

Without even knocking, Mavis entered. Inside, the room was filled with notebooks and glass vials. In the center, a single scientist was scrambling around with a syringe, taking samples of the liquids that were in the vials.

"Finally, some help arrived!" he cried when he saw them. He had a british accent, and a weird haircut, "Here, help me mix these…"

Before he could say another word, Mavis waved her hands, "Sleep." she said.

Burke fell over face first onto the ground, snoring.

Mavis turned to Johnny, "C'mon, lets not waste time. We came here to do one thing, lets not screw up."

Johnny nodded, "Alright.". The two of them quickly went out of the laboratory and continued on, walking down the hallways, until they finally reached a door that had a red plaque on it, saying:

 _Entry Prohibited_

Mavis, obviously, tried to open the door, but it didn't budge. She turned to mist and tried to get through the door, but it was airtight. "Augh...Its right behind this thing, isn't it?" she asked.

"Yeah, but they've actually placed decent protection on it this time." said Johnny. "Wanna try to use telekinesis to open it?"

"Sure." said Mavis. She concentrated, feeling everything in the door. She felt every spring, gear, and wire that was in the security systems. _Unlock_. She said.

There was a click, and the door opened. Mavis nearly collapsed, but Johnny caught her, "Woah...don't push yourself too hard."

Mavis pushed herself back up, "I'm fine, come on."

The two of them walked into the weapon chamber. At the very center was the metal ring. Johnny and Mavis both recognized it instantly, and ran over to it. It was surrounded by glass. Silently, Mavis shut the door behind them, and then activated her staff. Johnny activated his doom blade.

"If magic can't destroy this glass, then nothing can." said Mavis, "Let's trash this thing."

With that, the two of them began to cut, smash, and stab the glass as much as possible. At first, their attacks merely glanced off the side, but eventually, small cracks began to appear. Small cracks that began to grow in size, until finally-

 _Crash_

The entire glass case broke, shattering in front of them. Luckily, Mavis was able to use her telekinesis to shield the two of them from the glass, but at the same time, the alarm began blaring.

 _Warning: Weapon Glass Case has been broken. This is not a drill._

"Shit." murmured Johnny, "Come on, lets destroy this thing!"

Johnny and Mavis quickly ran at the weapon, but right before they were able to reach it-

"Augh!" Mavis was zapped by an orb at the top of the ceiling. Johnny was also hit by the lightning, and was forced back. Behind them, the two of them heard soldiers yelling and running. Mavis charged the weapon again, but was forced to retreat yet again as the orb electrified her.

Johnny sighed. This was gonna suck. He charged right into the weapon. When the orb electrified him, he pushed straight through, not caring. The pain was immense, more than he thought he could ever bear. He slowly pushed his way through, ignoring Mavis's screams to retreat behind him. Mavis activated her staff as a dozen soldiers ran into the room, weapons blazing. She covered for Johnny, while Johnny finally closed the last meter, and slowly brought his doom blade up, stabbing the weapon with as much strength as he had left-

There was an explosion, and everything went black.


	29. Future

Mavis, being a vampire, always had superhuman senses. She could sense it when people were going through pain, or when people were about to die. That's why this moment was killing her.

She was blocking off bullets from the soldiers, covering for Johnny as he pushed into the electrical field with his doom blade. She could already feel the pain that Johnny was going through. It was like a sixth sense. But then, there was a bright flash, and an explosion. Behind Mavis, the weapon blew up, and out of Mavis's peripheral vision, she saw Johnny slam into a wall and slide down, blood coming out of his mouth. One of the soldiers firing at Mavis ran over and grabbed Johnny's lifeless body, dragging him behind the line of soldiers-

"NO."

Mavis slammed the ground with her staff, and a shockwave exploded outwards, blasting all the soldiers back and slamming them against the walls like rag dolls. She ran over to Johnny and felt his pulse. It was still there, but it was barely beating-

 _Bang_

A bullet went right through Johnny's stomach. Someone had tried to shoot him in a last ditch effort to kill him.

Mavis screamed. A solid wall of gale-force anger blasted through the entire room, killing every living organism in it apart from herself and Johnny. The blast doors in front of the room was bent into a U-shape. The ceiling was blasted open, the dirt and grass being disintegrated by the pure force of the telekinesis. There was now a hole leading from the surface down to where they were.

Mavis grabbed Johnny telekinetically and lifted herself out of the massive sinkhole she created. Behind her, Johnny floated horizontally above the ground. At the main entrance, soldiers were pouring out, their guns blazing. Mavis yelled, and another wave of telekinetic energy blasted through the entire island, causing the ground to shake. The soldiers who just came out of the facility were lifted ten feet off the ground and thrown five hundred feet away into the ocean, where she telekinetically drowned them. But then she noticed the other defenses that the soldiers had made.

On the other end of the island, a massive door disguised as a rock slid open, and a dozen tanks rolled out, firing their guns. Mavis ducked behind a rock, telekinetically bringing Johnny with her. The tanks continued their barrage of fire, blasting holes in the dirt and making plumes of grass and sand fly up.

Above them, the _Death's Bane_ decloaked and opened fire on the tanks, launching missile after missile at them, but even the _Death's Bane_ couldn't keep up with the stream of tanks coming out of the military garage. Mavis spent those moments ignoring the noise and the gunfire. Instead, she began to try to heal Johnny. She telekinetically took out the bullet in Johnny's stomach, and wrapped her lab jacket around the wound, applying pressure to it. Another tank fired, destroying the entire boulder. Another two tanks fired at the now-exposed Mavis and Johnny. Mavis deflected both of the shells with telekinesis, but then lurched forward, too tired to do anything else.

The was the end. This was where she died.

The tanks trained their guns on her, ready to fire, when-

 _BOOOM_

There was a brilliant flash of light, and the tanks were all disintegrated in an instant. More projectiles flew through the air, smashing into the soldiers and sending them flying. The entire military garage collapsed as missiles collided with it, each one exploding with deadly efficiency.

Mavis's eyes went from all the destruction, to its source. Right off the shores of the island, was none other than the USS Zumwalt. Mavis could only watch in amazement as another missile slammed into the ground, this time detonating underground and probably destroying part of the facility.

On the intercom of the USS Zumwalt, Mavis heard captain James yelling at her, "Mavis, get Johnny and run! I'll hold them off!"

Mavis turned around, not wasting time to respond, and grabbed Johnny telekinetically. Above her, the _Death's Bane_ landed, and Techno whizzed out, helping Johnny into it. Only after they were inside the _Death's Bane_ did Mavis turn on Techno, "Heal him." she hissed at Techno.

Techno buzzed around, checking on Johnny, "He is barely alive right now, but luckily, I have treatment for him that can heal him to full health. It just requires time."

Mavis nodded, "Hurry up and give him the treatment, do _not_ let him die. Understand?"

Techno bowed, "Of course not, Miss Dracula."

Mavis ran over to the cockpit, and turned on the camera display. Underneath her, she saw the USS Zumwalt launch another volley of sea-to-land missiles, destroying much of the island, then begin to draw out, sailing away from the island.

"Get us to Paradise," said Mavis, "Go Mach 5."

"As you wish," said the AI, "Mach 5 speeds reached."

The cockpit view narrowed, and they began to fly faster than the speed of sound, whizzing across the Atlantic Ocean. The only thing Mavis was thinking of was Johnny. If she loses Johnny, she loses everything…

* * *

"They destroyed our weapon?" said the man behind the desk, "They infiltrated the facility at Clipperton?"

George nodded slowly, "Yes, they did have help, however. A military battleship gave them firepower support while they were running."

"A military battleship…" murmured the man behind the desk, "Interesting. Any good news? Especially after losing a multitrillion dollar superweapon?"

George shrugged, "Operation Starflux is ready to execute. We can start any time soon."

The man behind the desk sighed, "Alright, execute the operation next week, your choice when exactly. I need to pay Clipperton island a visit to check up on how badly the vampire and the human actually tore it up."

"What about the government?" asked George, "They'll want to know what happened. We borrowed the island from them."

The man behind the desk waved his hands dismissively, "We will soon be at the point when we won't be dependant on the government for our funding. Once Operation Starflux is in action, we will be able to conquer not only this world, but many others."

George bowed his head, "A great plan indeed. I will go now, and carry out your orders."

* * *

Captain James hated working the USS Zumwalt with only six crew members. Luckily, thanks to its state-of-the-art technology, only 6 people were needed to pilot it. But unfortunately, because of the crew restrictions, they weren't able to use the big guns. Captain James could only launch the most basic sea-to-land missiles, rather than use the best, since those required more crew to handle. At the current moment, the USS Zumwalt was sailing at 38 knots towards Miami's military port. He would be able to make it right on time according to his estimates.

But now he had other things to worry about. Hopefully, in his attack on Clipperton Island, nobody actually recognized the USS Zumwalt. It wasn't exactly a very well-known destroyer, so he wasn't too worried about that. Another thing he was worried about was the well being of Johnny and Mavis. According to what he saw through the telescope, Johnny looked pretty beaten up. Almost as if he were dead. He sighed. It wasn't his job to look after the two of them, after all. Mavis would take good care of Johnny, being a vampire, and they would be safe on board their aircraft.

As the USS Zumwalt sped towards Miami, Captain James could only think about what the supreme leader was planning now, and what he could do to stop it.

* * *

The _Death's Bane_ finally landed at Paradise, touching ground on the soft sand and completely cutting the engines once they were safely hidden underneath a patch of trees.

Mavis carried Johnny out, with Techno still whizzing around him, injecting Johnny with shots and other medications. While carrying Johnny, Mavis walked down into headquarters and set Johnny down on the bed, wrapping a blanket around him. His skin looked paler than usual. He had lost alot of blood with that bullet wound.

Techno softly buzzed around, and after taking Johnny's pulse for possibly the hundredth time, said, "He'll be good as new in a few weeks. Luckily for him, the bullet missed his stomach and only seemed to have gone through flesh, not bone."

Mavis sighed with relief, "Alright...make sure he lives, I'm gonna go take a shower." she said.

Mavis went to the lake and washed off all the blood, dirt, and grime that had accumulated on her body through that battle. After that, she decided to walk around the beach, as a stress reliever. As she got onto the beach, however, she noticed someone standing at the edge of the water.

He looked oddly familiar…

Mavis approached the figure. He was wearing a cape, with a black suit, and his hair was slicked backwards. The figure turned around, and Mavis gasped. It was her dad.

"Dad…?" whispered Mavis, staring at him.

Dracula smiled lightly, "My dear Mavis...there is so much I wish to tell you."

Mavis retreated slightly, "You're dead though...I watched you die."

Dracula rolled his eyes, "Yes, I died, along with every other monster in the world. You are the last vampire, Mavis."

"Then...you're not real?" asked Mavis. She approached her dad with more confidence and touched his cape. Sure enough, her hand went right through it.

Dracula smiled sadly, "Mavey...just because I'm dead does not mean that I'm not real. I can still appear in the living realm once in a while, when I'm permitted to. You have found an excellent refuge here."

"Yeah," Mavis said, kicking up some sand, "We named it Paradise, after where you and mom met."

Dracula nodded, not taking his eyes off the horizon, "Mavis, you have to tell me...is Johnny okay?"

Mavis shifted uncomfortably, "He's almost dead, but he's still alive. Techno can heal him back to full health in a few days, or at least that's what he told me."

"You named him Techno?" said Dracula, surprised, "Interesting."

There was a silence, before finally, Mavis decided to say something, "Why are you here, dad?"

Dracula sighed, "I've come with a grim warning. Because I am dead, I'm bound by my own laws, and I cannot tell you directly what is to come. However, you must understand something. The supreme leader is trying to take over this world."

Mavis nodded, "I already guessed that," she said, "But how?"

Dracula gulped, "I cannot say, I'm forbidden to say it. But you must understand the severity of what will happen if he does. Once the supreme leader takes over this world, he will not stop there. He will conquer other worlds. I'm afraid that the superweapon you and Johnny just destroyed was merely a distraction to keep you guys away from the real threat."

Mavis turned to him, "A distraction? What's worse than a weapon that can destroy a whole city with a single hit?"

"You will have to find out yourself," said Dracula, "Mavey, my sweet blood orange, I have to go now. Just know that whatever happens, I will always be a proud father."

Mavis turned around, "Wait, dad-"

"Goodbye."

Dracula vanished, leaving nothing behind on the beach.

Mavis stood there for a moment, her head racing. She was relatively certain she was not hallucinating, but she had to make sure. Rushing down back to headquarters, she ran to Techno and asked him, "Tell me if I have signs of hallucinations."

Techno scanned her for a few seconds, "No signs of hallucination detected. However, you do appear to be suffering from anxiety."

Mavis waved her hands dismissively, "Never mind that, go back to healing Johnny."

As Techno resumed his work on Johnny, Mavis's mind went swimming. What did her father mean? How would the supreme leader take over the world? Her father mentioned something about conquering other worlds...did it have something to do with space technology? Perhaps the supreme leader was designing warships that could go to space.

Mavis sighed. Her father was right. She would have to find out herself. Mavis fell asleep that night holding Johnny's hand while sitting on a seat next to him. She could think of nothing but what her father had said, and what it meant for her future.

* * *

 _Operation Name: Starflux_

 _Purpose: Annihilation of all other nations, and the conquest of other worlds._

 _Technology: The main reactor, which was built yesterday, is capable of created a door through space-time, to other universes, in which we can conquer and loot. The amount of universes we can conquer is seemingly endless. In order to combat potential resistance, Supreme Leader has ordered seventeen fleets to be constructed. Each fleet will be made up of 30 warships. Each warship has the capability of flying and raining destruction on anything that gets in its way._

 _Execution Date: 1/21/2018 (Next Week)_


	30. Entry

Mavis spent the next few days caring for Johnny and trying to crack her father's Vampiric notes. She eventually gave up on that after a while, and decided to go out and try swimming on the beach. Mavis wasn't a very strong swimmer, but was comfortable with water at least. The only difference now was that it was in salt water, which Mavis was seriously not used to.

After diving down thirty feet and admiring the beauty of the coral reefs that grew outside the island, Mavis resurfaced and swam back to the island, checking on Johnny again. His pulse had steadied over time, but he still looked pale, and Techno had informed her that Johnny would be out for another few days.

Mavis then decided to turn on the TV, and immediately regretted it. Splattered in big red words over the New York News Station, were the words:

 _USS Zumwalt - Betrayal by the captain?_

Mavis continued watching the news, wondering what Captain James did this time. Sure enough, it was pretty bad:

 _Captain James A. Burgandy of the USS Zumwalt, the captain of an American Zumwalt-class destroyer, came back to port with only 6 crew members. After police attempted to force their way onto the ship, the Captain apparently opened fire and fled port. Because it is a stealth military destroyer, the US government has no idea where it is at the current moment, but anyone who has any idea of the Captain or the Crew's whereabouts should step forward immediately._

Mavis sighed with relief. At least Captain James was fine. He _did_ save Mavis and Johnny. Risked his ship and his crew for it as well. Mavis smiled slightly. She had to give credit to James for being brave at least. Then the bit of news came through:

 _From yesterday morning all the way up to the present time, an unusual amount of rockets have been spotted streaking the sky. Although rockets are a normal occurrence, these days they have been spotted in groups of twenty or thirty, which has never happened before. NASA denies involvement in this strange phenomena, and some astronomers are pointing to Russia or China for them._

Mavis frowned. Rockets? She shook her head. She was being over reactive. This type of stuff probably had nothing to do with her. Mavis turned around to Johnny, who was still silently lying on the bed, his chest rising and falling steadily. Mavis smiled. At least he was looking decently healthy.

* * *

Ashar Libney was at the brink of a great discovery. True, he had created an artificial alloy that was stronger than the stone Dracula had placed over his laboratory, but this invention could truly save mankind from certain death. He was a self-proclaimed genius. He faked his ID to be part of the USS Zumwalt's crew, and the move actually worked! The feds had no idea where he was. He knew that the feds wanted to create an interdimensional portal, but also knew that there could only be one portal for every world. If he created the portal first, and contained it...

Around Ashar was the scene of what looked like a mad scientist's laboratory. Wires, glass vials, glowing liquids in tubes. In the center of it was a spherical metal object with wires and dials protruding out of it. Ashar fiddled with some of the dials, turning switches and pulling levers, until finally-

"Yes…" murmured Ashar. His work, his beautiful work was finally complete. In the center of the room, the metal sphere began glowing. Above it, an oval of light opened up, sucking pretty much everything apart from the metal orb into it. Ashar pressed a button, and immediately, plexiglass came down from the ceiling, surrounding the oval of light. Ashar typed commands into the computer, but the computer kept sending back error reports.

"Augh...come on, work!" yelled Ashar frustratingly. On top of the orb, the oval of light began to grow bigger. The plexiglass began to crack. Ashar typed another command into the computer, but this time, instead of an error report, the computer screen cracked and blacked out.

"No...NO!" yelled Ashar. He ran out of the room, shutting the fifteen-foot thick blast doors behind him, before a loud crunching sound happened. Behind Ashar, the massive blast doors were torn off their hinges, and flew into the massive portal. Ashar tried to run, but soon enough the portal also caught up to him, swallowing him as well…

A few hours later, the portal reached its maximum size, which was about the diameter of a school bus. By then, the facility in which Ashar had been working in had become completely empty, everything that was in it being sucked into the portal. A low roar escaped from the portal, as something within it stirred.

* * *

Mavis was practicing telekinetic levitation the third day since she came back when Techno gave her the news. She was hovering six feet above the ground when the door to the headquarters opened, and Techno rushed out, "Miss Dracula, Johnny has awoken."

Mavis immediately dropped herself, then sprinted into the headquarters using her vampire speed. Sure enough, Johnny was sitting there, rubbing his forehead groggily. Mavis ran over and wrapped Johnny in a tight embrace while kissing him, "I was so worried! Thank goodness you're okay!"

Johnny laughed quietly, "I don't remember much...did we destroy the weapon?"

Mavis nodded, kissing him again, "Yeah we did, thanks to you…"

For the next thirty minutes, Mavis filled Johnny in on everything that happened since he was knocked out, including her encounter with the ghost of Dracula and the news about rockets. Johnny was more interested in the encounter with Dracula.

"Hmmm….so that means that we have more to deal with than we thought…." he murmured, stroking his chin, "World Conquest sounds pretty tempting for an all-powerful person like the supreme leader, but it doesn't make sense…"

Mavis looked at him, confused, "What doesn't make sense?" she asked.

"Well...we've been laboring under the impression that the supreme leader is actually Ben under a disguise, and that's why they want to kill us so much. But all this world conquest, it doesn't really help the supreme leader find us, does it?" said Johnny.

Mavis shrugged, "We don't even know if Ben is still alive, it said in the note that him finding an elixir to immortality was only a possibility. But point is, they're going to open an interdimensional portal, and they're going to try to wipe out everyone else. We're the only ones who know about this."

Johnny sighed, "Why is all the burden placed on us when it comes to saving the world…" he muttered.

Mavis shrugged, "Point is, I say we strike before they open the portal. That way, we won't even give them a chance at using it."

Johnny nodded, "Alright...but where do we go? We have no leads."

"Actually, we do," Mavis took out a map from her back pocket, "Techno made some extra scans of the facility at Clipperton Island, and found these blueprints."

Johnny looked at the blueprints. They showed the designs for what appeared to be an orb-like structure, with wires and dials protruding out of it at all angles. At the top, the words "Portal Design" were printed in bold letters. "Okay...so we have the designs to build one….but how does this help us locate it?" asked Johnny.

Mavis grinned, "Look at the top right hand corner."

Johnny looked, and sure enough, saw, in small printed letters, the words "Phobjikha Valley" at the top right hand corner. He also grinned, "This is our ticket." he said, handing the blueprint back to Mavis. Mavis pocketed it again, "I tracked down that valley to be an isolated area in the middle of Bhutan."

Johnny's eyes widened, "Bhutan? I've been there once! It's great."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "We're going there to blow up an interdimensional portal to prevent the supreme leader from killing everyone, we're not taking detours." she said.

Johnny laughed, "I love you, Mavey." he suddenly said.

Mavis smiled, "I love you too." she murmured back.

"So…" Johnny said hesitantly, "When do we...uh...leave?"

Mavis shrugged, "Anytime soon, I mean, we've been here for a long time, haven't we? Might as well blow something up once in a while."

Johnny's face fell slightly, but he hid it quickly. Mavis noticed this and immediately regretted saying that. While she had been enjoying the beauty of the island for three whole days, Johnny's been stuck sitting in bed, unconscious, having no idea what happened after he got knocked out. "Oh, Johnny...I'm so sorry, we'll stay here for another day, how about that?"

Johnny smiled weakly, "Nah, its fine, we should leave tomorrow. We can't give the feds an advantage, especially in this time."

"But, you should have more rest, you need-"

"Shhhh," Johnny hushed Mavis with a kiss, "Listen, all this worrying only shows me that you love me. We'll leave tomorrow afternoon, and head straight for Bhutan. Got it?"

Mavis sighed, not wanting to fight, "Alright, Johnny...you should go and wash up."

Johnny then realized how filthy he was. Sitting in a bed for four days without washing at all after a battle wasn't good for him. He nodded, "Good idea." he murmured, then trudged off towards the lake.

Half an hour later, Johnny walked back into the headquarters, and turned towards the bed to see Mavis sitting there without her clothes on.

His mouth dropped. Mavis looked at him, "You know, since we're probably both gonna die tomorrow...might as well."

Johnny walked over and kissed Mavis, "We aren't gonna die tomorrow...we love each other too much to do that…" he murmured. The two of them fell onto the bed, their bodies meshed together. That would be one night to remember for both of them.

* * *

"What? What do you mean another portal's been opened?" asked George, "I thought you said that only we had the tech for this type of stuff!"

The scientist was panting, "Sir, our technology is 100% working, the only thing that could possibly hinder it is if there is another portal, so we must assume that there is another one somewhere in this world-"

"So tell me then! Do you know where it is?" asked George.

The scientist grinned lightly, "We managed to narrow down the area to an apparently isolated area in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Permission to send out attack parties?"

George waved his hands, "Are you stupid? Yes! You didn't have to ask me for that one!"

The scientist nodded fervently and ran off. George sighed and sat back down. This was the last thing he needed. Another damn portal to take care of. More time wasted before operation Starflux could be executed. A message came onto his computer, informing him that four squadrons of soldiers had boarded a destroyer and were sailing to the location at that moment, T=45 minutes. He didn't reply.

George needed time. He had too many problems on his hands at that moment. He needed to figure out where Mavis and Johnny were, he needed to protect the portal they had constructed, and he needed to now destroy the portal they had just discovered, and find out who constructed it.

George grabbed his doom blade and got out of his office, walking over to the hangar bay where he boarded the destroyer that was leaving. He was going to personally see to it that the portal was destroyed. He was not going to fail.

* * *

Lord Emperor Tiberius was the ruler of the kingdom of Nareth. His army was unrivaled in the region, with massive warships and biologically engineered soldiers. He had conquered all his world had to offer, and now sat on his throne, ruling with an iron fist over the population of his kingdom. The last thing he expected was for something interesting to happen, being a person who hasn't met a challenge for fifty years. But sure enough, one of his messengers scrambled up to him, "Sir! We have found a strange phenomena occur right outside the city gates!"

Tiberius turned to him, frowning, "A phenomena?"

"Yes sir! It looks like-like a portal of some kind, or a door to somewhere else!"

Tiberius stood up, "I will go there personally, get me my personal guard."

The messenger nodded, "I will!"

A few minutes later, Lord Emperor Tiberius and his personal guard stood in front of the portal that was in front of the city. Around him, curious citizens looked at the portal as well, keeping their distance in case it was dangerous. Tiberius threw a rock into the portal, and watched as it vanished through it. On the other side, Tiberius could see the murky image of what appeared to be stone cold walls…

Tiberius turned to his people, "I will go personally. My guard will accompany me. If there is anything useful, I will report back immediately. Yukan, you are the temporary ruler of Nareth for now."

Yukan, Tiberius's second-in-command, saluted and said, "Yes sir!"

Tiberius turned back to the portal, and sighed. He had been searching for a long time. Searching for a single individual. He had fled his own realm in fear of being killed by Dracula's treachery, but now, he was strong. He could fight back. He hoped, that if he entered this portal, it would somehow bring him closer to the one person he's been hunting his whole life.

Mavis Dracula.

* * *

 **Note: Things got big**


	31. Hunt

Johnny woke up the next morning with dread looming over him like a cloud. Last night had been the best in his life, but now they had to leave Paradise again, to prevent the supreme leader from getting his hands on a portal this time. Mavis was still sleeping, her head laying on his chest. Johnny gently set her down on her pillow, then got up and threw on his clothes. He meandered around the room, preparing for the upcoming battle, throwing the relics into the suitcase, and waking up Techno and telling him to prepare the _Death's Bane_.

Mavis eventually woke up as Johnny was searching for his doom blades. She smiled when she saw him, "Good morning," she said, sitting up and stretching, "ready to kick some ass?" she asked, telekinetically throwing on her clothes while handing Johnny his doom blades.

Johnny shrugged, "I really hope I am, we're dealing with world-threatening stuff right now. I have a feeling that it's gonna be harder this time."

Mavis stopped Johnny, "Wait, lemme check on your bullet wound," she said, "Don't want it getting in the way when we need you the most."

Johnny rolled his eyes, and lifted up his shirt, revealing the wound near his stomach that was now just a nasty purple scar. Mavis nodded, "Looks fine," she said, "But don't push it."

"We're trying to stop someone from entering a different dimension and destroying the world, I have a feeling we're gonna have to push it." said Johnny, dropping his shirt back down.

Mavis punched his arm, "Just don't die, and we'll both be fine." she said, "The job's simple, we fly over, find where the portal is, and use a missile to punch a hole through it. Then we go in personally and destroy it."

Johnny frowned, "Where do we get the missiles from?"

"We installed air-to-surface missiles on the _Death's Bane_ , remember?" asked Mavis, "We never used them though, might as well now."

Johnny thought about it for a moment, "That is true I guess…"

An hour later, Mavis and Johnny were on the B-2. The two of them had ordered Techno to stay at Paradise and keep the headquarters in good shape in case they returned late or never returned at all. Soon enough they were once again flying high above the clouds, Mavis and Johnny spending their time talking about battle plans.

* * *

George had just reached the area in the Pacific Ocean where his scientists had found the other portal to be. It was a small barren island, with a lone palm tree swaying in the wind.

The four squadrons of soldiers filed out of their boats and got onto the island, where one of them called George, "Sir, I found an entry point."

George ran over, "Good, use explosives to blast it open, stay cautious, this person probably has traps ready for us."

The soldiers quickly planted a doorbuster bomb over the metal doors, then pressed the detonation button. There was a loud explosion, and the door burst open, sparks and smoke flying everywhere.

The soldiers immediately filed through, yelling. At the very bottom, the lead soldier held his hand up in a fist, and all the other soldiers stopped. "Sir, we've spotted a portal, hurry!"

George ran down, and sure enough, saw the portal. It was about the diameter of a large truck, and looked like a miniature black hole, except it wasn't sucking them in. "How do we destroy this?" asked George.

One of the soldiers pointed at an orb directly underneath the portal, "I think that's how we destroy it, it's the only thing the portal hasn't sucked in in the room."

George nodded, "Alright, so go and blow it-"

"You won't be destroying anything, fool."

George whipped his head around in time to see someone walk out from behind the portal. He was wearing head-to-toe body armor, which glowing in the crevices. George saw a dozen more robed men jump out through the other end of the portal and into Earth.

"OPEN FIRE!" screamed George. Bullets flew in all directions, hitting the orb and destroying the portal, and at the robed men. The robed guards activated what looked like shields, that blocked all the bullets, and the bullets simply bounced off the armor of the first person.

"Enough." said the armored person. He waved his hands, and every soldier in the room had their weapons ripped out of their hands. "I have a job to do," growled the armored person, "You are in my way. Prepare to die."

* * *

Mavis and Johnny were a few minutes from the base when Johnny ordered the AI to begin scans of the area

"Scans complete. Underground building discovered. Where should I target for air-to-surface missiles?"

"At the area with the highest concentration of energy," said Johnny, "If you can find some sort of portal, target that."

"Very well, Master Jonathan, targeting systems aligned. Should I fire missiles?"

Johnny grinned, "Begin firing."

The missile bombardment began. Dozens of Air-to-surface missiles rained death and destruction down on the enemy lines. Plumes of dirt flew up. It seemed to be going well, until-

"Warhead detected, flying straight towards us." said the AI. Sure enough, Johnny saw a small speck come at them from the horizon. Dangit. The feds must've anticipated them coming this time.

"AI, fly away from here," said Mavis, "Come back in a few minutes, do _not_ get hit by that thing." With that, Mavis grabbed Johnny, opened the back door, and jumped out, free-falling for a good thirty seconds before turning into a bat and dropping Johnny safely on the ground.

Above them, Johnny spotted the _Death's Bane_ go Mach 5, zipping away from the warhead, which lost track of the plane and careened sideways, flying into the side of a mountain and blowing up.

Johnny didn't need to look for the portal to find it. In one of the dozens of holes that were created with the missiles that they fired on the facility, was the portal. Except it was surrounded by a dozen black-robed guards.

Johnny's eyes sharpened. He knew these guards. They were the same ones who overpowered and killed Gerschiv. Johnny drew his doom blade, and Mavis took out her staff. The black robed guards also took out their weapons: swords, knives, and other lethal-looking things.

Mavis didn't wait for a cue, she turned to mist and went right into battle, engaging three of the guards at once. Johnny also fought the other guards, his doom blade automatically parrying and blocking for him whenever a hit came near. These guys were definitely harder to kill than regular soldiers. They were tougher, faster, stronger, and Mavis's telekinesis had no effect on them.

"Augh!" Mavis turned around to see Johnny stumble back, his shoulder bleeding. One of the guards must've managed to land a hit on him, despite his doom blades. Johnny yelled, fighting back and stabbing another guard right in the face, but being forced back onto defense when the other two guards closed in.

Johnny was being pushed back, so Mavis also began moving back purposely, staying on the defensive. One of the guards lunged at her, but she rolled out of the way and chopped him in half with her staff. She finally spotted an opening in between the two guards, and made a run for it, using her vampire speed to try to pass the guards, when-

 _Wham_

Mavis fell over, wheezing. Her breath had been knocked out. One of the guards had managed to hit her with their staff when she was in super speed. She was shocked. Nobody has ever managed to have a fast enough reaction time to stop her when she was in super speed. Mavis had just enough energy to roll out of the way when one of the guards stabbed the area she was just in.

Johnny managed to cut one of the guard's weapons in half, and brutally slashed him across the chest, killing him. The last guard didn't stop, still walking forward. Johnny screamed, "COME ON YOU COWARD!" and ran straight at the guard, locking himself into a brutal melee fight with the last guard.

Mavis was still on the defensive, backing up slowly. One of the guards attacked, slashing in her direction with his sword, but Mavis dodged it, bringing her staff down on the attacker's head, but the guard managed to sidestep and go behind her, bringing her into a headlock. The second guard walked forward, raising his weapon to strike.

Mavis suddenly spotted a grenade on the second guard's belt. She telekinetically detonated it, hoping for the best-

 _BOOM_

Mavis and the guard who was headlocking her both flew back. The last guard was completely disintegrated, ash being the only thing remaining of him.

Mavis grabbed her staff again and got up. In front of her, the guard who was knocked back did the same. Mavis charged, lunging. The guard sidestepped and tried to get her in a second headlock, but Mavis saw it coming this time. She ducked, then brought her staff straight up, cutting the guard clean in half.

Johnny, meanwhile, was being overpowered. He was backing up, a cut on his leg, when finally, Mavis appeared out of nowhere and chopped off the guard's head from behind.

Johnny grinned, "Took you long enough," he said, "C'mon let's go and blow up that portal."

Mavis grabbed his arm, "We can't," she said, pointing, "Look."

Johnny looked, and his face fell. In front of the portal were another dozen guards. "How many of those things do they have?" he asked.

"I don't know, but we can't fight them forever," said Mavis, "They don't appear to be pursuing us, I think their job is to only protect the portal."

Johnny sighed, "Alright then... _DEATH'S BANE!"_

There was silence at first, then _Death's Bane_ materialized above them, firing at the guards. The guards didn't even move. Johnny thought they were dead, until-

"You gotta be _kidding_ me." murmured Johnny.

The bullets were being deflected by some kind of force field around the shield generator. The feds really put effort into protecting this portal.

Mavis grabbed Johnny and turned into a bat, flying onto the _Death's Bane_. Onboard, Johnny closed the back doors, and Mavis yelled, "AI, get us outta here!"

The _Death's Bane_ zipped away, cutting through the clouds. As Mavis got settled in the pilot's seat, the AI suddenly said, "While you were fighting, I have gathered some news that may be relevant to your cause."

Johnny sighed, "What is it?"

The main screen suddenly turned on, showing news footage, "This is it." said the AI. Johnny and Mavis both watched.

 _This morning, a commercial passenger plane spotted a capsized military destroyer in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Since authorities have reached the area, they have confirmed that it was not of natural causes or of pilot error. Here are some photos of the wreckage._

The footage cut to a picture of the destroyer. It was literally bent in half, smoke rising out of it at all angles.

 _The destroyer has been confirmed to be the USS Arleigh Burke, a navy destroyer utilized by Weapons Development and by the US Navy._

Johnny's mouth opened. "Weapons development...that means that the supreme leader has something to do with it!"

The AI spoke up, "Exactly, which is why I've set course to the area in which the Destroyer was docked at."

Mavis glanced at Johnny, who shrugged back, "I got no better plan," said Johnny, "Let's go then."

* * *

Tiberius grinned. Finally, he was back in this world, where his hunt could continue. At the current moment, he and his guards were sailing across the open ocean with on the _USS Argus_ , the sister ship of the _USS Arleigh Burke_. In the bridge, Tiberius had George, who appeared to be the commander of the people who tried to attack the portal, steer the ship towards the nearest landmass.

Tiberius had only spared George because he was the only one capable of steering the ship. After they landed, he would dispose of him, and continue his search for Mavis Dracula. His blood boiled at the thought of her name. This was what he was meant to do.

As for George's men, they were dead. He had killed them with ease, not even putting in any effort. He then turned their main ship, the _USS Arleigh Burke_ , into a twisted pile of metal, and forced George to get to the nearest landmass.

What Tiberius didn't know was that George was secretly sending out encrypted messages, which told any ship nearby of what happened, and what their location was. There happened to be one ship nearby which could help…

* * *

Captain James had been sailing for three days without anything from the feds. He was living surprisingly comfortably, with a virtually unlimited food supply, and free access to anywhere on the ship. He was waiting for the Supreme Leader to do something, when one of his six crew members ran up, "Sir, we just received an encrypted message!"

James walked over to the front of the bridge, "What does it say?"

The crew member fiddled with some switches, "The encryption was hard to break through, but we managed to get this much: 'Heading Southeast in pacific ocean, coordinates 54.66 67.89, portal opened, extraterrestrial beings on board, SOS, SOS.'."

James's eyes narrowed, "A portal? Extraterrestrial beings?"

The crew member nodded, "That's certainly what the encryption says," he said, "Should we pursue?"

James nodded, "You don't joke when you send out SOS signals...come on, lets get moving."

The _USS Zumwalt_ switched course, heading straight for the coordinates which the encrypted message had given them.


	32. Healed

As the _Death's Bane_ flew over the border of California, Mavis began to grow worried about Johnny. His breathing seemed labored, and his bullet wound had grown a shade darker. Sometimes he even seemed as if he was about to pass out.

"Johnny, let me see the wound," said Mavis, "Come on now…"

She lifted the shirt again, and immediately retreated. The bullet wound was indeed darker, but that wasn't it. Purple veins had started to grow from the wound, and were spreading outwards. Johnny sighed, "I think...they had...poison weapons…."

Mavis grabbed a band aid and wrapped it around the wound, "You should've told me earlier! We have to get you an antidote."

Johnny nodded slowly, "Focus...on the mission." he said, "Can't...get distracted."

Mavis shook her head, "Don't say that," she murmured, "We'll get an antidote for the poison soon, don't worry."

Mavis was trying to act brave, but on the inside, she was panicking. What if there was no antidote to the poison? What if it couldn't be cured?

Johnny suddenly gasped, clutching at his throat, and fell over, unconscious. "No! Augh...AI, get us back to Paradise." said Mavis, "Go as fast as possible. We need to get Techno."

Three hours later, they were back in paradise. Techno surveyed the wound. Robots couldn't show signs of concern, so Mavis didn't know if the wound was okay or really bad.

Finally, Techno turned to her, "Master Jonathan seems to have a strain of poison that I do not recognize inside of him. His heartbeat is steady for now, but I'm afraid that the poison is lethal, and will eventually kill him."

Mavis growled with frustration, "How do we cure him?" she asked, "Is there anything I can do?"

"In one of the scans the _Death's Bane_ did on the facility at Bhutan, it detected a possible antidote that can cure him. However, retrieval of this antidote would be admittedly risky, and may result in your death as well."

Mavis didn't hesitate, "Lets get going then!" she yelled.

A few minutes later they were once again on the B-2, flying over Europe. Mavis knew that she had to get the antidote, no matter what. If she loses Johnny, she loses everything. As they whizzed over the border of vietnam, Mavis grabbed her staff, "How much longer, AI?" she asked.

"About 43 seconds," said the AI, "Engaging Mach 5 to speed us up."

Soon enough they were once again over Bhutan. It's weird, how slowly time travels sometimes. It's been less than 12 hours since Mavis was last here. The missile strike craters were still visible, and there were guards crawling everywhere. But at the same time, there were a dozen entrances to the base. Each one of those craters was a sinkhole leading directly to the facility.

Mavis waited, until the _Death's Bane_ was perfectly aligned with one of the craters, then yelled, "NOW!"

The back doors opened, and Mavis jumped out. She didn't bother with stealth. Stealth would slow her down. She needed speed and efficiency now.

As soon as she landed, she didn't wait to fight. A soldier yelled something, but Mavis didn't care. She sprinted as fast as she could, flying through the craters into one of the rooms, bursting through the next door. Techno was in her pocket, telling her which way to go. Mavis whizzed down the next two hallways, probably making everyone nearby go deaf since she was going supersonic.

Eventually, she reached a locked door. Not waiting to strategize, Mavis punched the door open, and walked in. "Where's the antidote?" she asked Techno. All around her, vials filled with bubbling liquids stood on racks. Techno led her to one specific vial. One with a thick murky green liquid in it. Mavis grabbed it and put it into her pocket.

"There she is!"

Three squadrons of soldiers ran to block the doorway, their guns pointed at her. Mavis growled. She looked around, but the other two entrances into the room were also blocked. This time, the black robed guards also showed up. Mavis growled. So they wanted to make her fight.

Mavis yelled, striking the staff into the ground. A wave of telekinetic energy flew through the room, blasting everyone apart from the black robed guards back and killing them instantly. The robed guards activated their weapons and approached Mavis, but this time, Techno was also on her side.

"Hmmm, interesting," said Techno, dodging a slash from one of the guard's weapons, "Mr. Guard, did you know that the bilinear quantum fibers on your electrostatic energizers are deactivated? Let me fix that for you.". A few seconds later, the guard which was trying to kill him yelped as his entire weapon spontaneously combusted in his hands, turning him into a pile of charcoal.

Mavis had already killed three of the guards, and was locked into a battle with the last one. Techno whizzed behind him and said, "Wow, you guards have no sense of quark motion, do you?". A second later, the guard screamed as his cape wrapped around his face and choked him to death.

Mavis grabbed Techno, not waiting for instructions, and flew out of the room at Mach 16. When she was back out of the facility, she yelled, "DEATH'S BANE!"

The _Death's Bane_ materialized over her, and Mavis flew back into the plane. Right as she got back onto the plane, the AI said, "Activating stealth systems, where shall I go, Miss Dracula?"

"Go to the coordinates where the _USS Arleigh Burke_ was at," said Mavis, "Techno, help me out here, what do I do?"

Techno whizzed over to her, "Give the vial to me." he said.

Mavis handed Techno the vial. Techno immediately began creating vials and flasks. After a few minutes of distilling, mixing, and boiling, Techno poured the liquid into Johnny's mouth. Mavis waited, but nothing happened.

"If my calculations are correct, Johnny should be back in a few hours," said Techno, "But he may suffer from paranoia as a side effect of this antidote."

Mavis nodded, not really listening, "He'll be fine in the long term, right?" she asked.

"Of course," replied Techno swiftly, "He'll be completely recovered within a few days."

Mavis sighed, and sat back down at the back of the _Death's Bane_. Too much has happened lately. "How much longer until we reach the _USS Arleigh Burke_?" she asked.

"Four hours and twenty three minutes," replied the AI, "I suggest you get some sleep, you look exhausted."

Mavis wasn't even going to ask how the AI could "see" her, being an AI, but she complied, sitting on one of the sofas in the cockpit and quickly falling asleep.

* * *

"What?" murmured the Supreme Leader, "The portal opened...and what happened?"

The soldier standing in front of him spoke up immediately, "What appears to be thirteen individuals from a separate dimension have entered this world. They destroyed the _USS Arleigh Burke_ and have captured the _USS Argus_."

"Where are they now?" asked the Supreme Leader.

"Off the coast of South America. We've been tracking them for a while." said the soldier, "We have managed to shut down the portal in the Pacific, but now that our portal is working, the people from the other dimension may be hunting us so that they can return."

The Supreme Leader sighed, "Call off the attack on the world's nations, regroup the fleets to the Aux Isles. No matter how powerful those people are, they are nothing compared to Starflux."

The soldier nodded, "Yes sir."

"Also," the Supreme Leader leaned forward, "Is George still alive?"

The soldier looked surprised at this question, "We don't know for certain, but if the rest of the men who were sent there were all killed by the aliens, then it would be a safe bet to say that George was also killed."

"Hmph," the Supreme Leader sighed, "Deploy the _USS Independence_ and the _USS Aegis_ and intercept the _USS Argus_ , I want answers. Do not kill the aliens, only capture them."

The soldier bowed, "As you wish sir."

* * *

Johnny woke up, and immediately regretted it. He leaned over and puked into the cockpit's trash can. "Ugh…that sucked."

Johnny looked around. He was in the _Death's Bane_ , and from the cockpit window, it appeared as if they were flying over the ocean.

"Ah, you're awake." said Techno, whizzing over, "Hold still, your blood pressure is a little...ah there we go."

Techno injected something into Johnny, and immediately, the dizziness went away, and he collapsed back onto the ground, breathing hard.

"Where are we going?" he asked Techno.

"Heading to the wreckage of the _USS Arleigh Burke_ ," said Techno, "Mavis's orders. You almost died fourteen times in the past twelve hours, I wouldn't push it."

"But...that was a while ago..." murmured Johnny, "What happened in between?"

"Well...since you were poisoned, Mavis decided to return to Bhutan and steal an antidote for you. From the looks of it, the Antidote is working well."

Johnny looked down at his bullet wound. Sure enough, the purple veins were already retreating back towards the wound.

"I owe Mavis so much…" he murmured. Johnny leaned down and kissed Mavis softly on the cheek. Mavis mumbled something in her sleep, but didn't move.

Techno buzzed around, "Anyways, we are heading over to a government-secured location, so they'll probably have guards there. I would suggest taking a little rest."

Johnny stared at Techno as if he was crazy, "Are you kidding? I was just knocked out...again! I'm not sleepy at all."

"Well, fine. If you do not wish to sleep, then you can help me reload the _Death's Bane_."

For the next hour and a half, Johnny helped Techno take out ammunition from the plane and duplicate it using the duplication relic that they had taken from the hotel. By the end of that session, all of the _Death's Bane_ 's armaments had been reloaded.

The AI suddenly perked up, "We are fifteen minutes out, please prepare for combat."

The AI woke up Mavis, who slowly dragged herself out of the sofa, and saw Johnny. In an instant, Johnny was pinned to the ground, Mavis above him. Mavis glared at Johnny, "Do not ever," she said, "get poisoned EVER again."

Johnny laughed, "I love you, Mavis."

Mavis's face softened, and she kissed Johnny, "I was so worried!" she kept yelling, "I thought you were going to die! I thought-"

Johnny hushed her, "Hey, I'm alive, you're alive, the plane's okay. We're all okay. Focus on the mission right now, we don't want to mess up."

Mavis nodded, "Right…"

Johnny rubbed his head, "So...uh, I kinda forgot, why are we going to the wreckage again?"

Mavis stared at him, "We need to figure out what the Supreme Leader was doing in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, seemingly away from where all the important stuff is."

Johnny nodded, "Ah...I see." Johnny grabbed his doom blades and placed them back on his belt, then grinned, "So...ready to kick some ass?"

Mavis smiled grudgingly, "Of course."

* * *

Captain James hated tracking other ships. Everything got in his way. The clouds, the storms, the waves, even the damn engines stopped working one time.

But finally, there it was. The _USS Argus_. On the horizon. Immediately, Captain James ordered full speed, his six crew members scrambling around and pressing dials and knobs, making the _USS Zumwalt_ go as fast as possible. They began to catch up to the _USS Argus_ , closing their distance, until-

 _Boom_

A shell hit the water thirty meters to their starboard side, creating a plume of water. "They're firing at us!" yelled one of the crew members.

Captain James growled, so whoever sent him the encryption was either steering the destroyer involuntarily, or he was being lured into a trap. Either way, it left him with no alternative.

"Return fire!" yelled Captain James, "Use Missile pods A through D, fire the front cannons as well."

At the front of the destroyer, a turret rose out on a platform, turning its gun and firing a shell back at the _USS Argus_. At first, there was silence, then-

 _Boom_

A plume of water appeared a few meters to the left of the _Argus._ "Missed dangit!" yelled the crew member who fired. "Well don't stop, keep firing!" yelled the Captain, "You, get those missiles into the air!"

The _Argus_ returned fire, sending plumes of water high up into the sky. The Zumwalt launched three missiles, which roared towards the _Argus_ at several thousand miles per hour, until-

"Hit!" yelled the crew member who fired the missiles, "Hit!"

There were cheers on the deck. The _Argus_ seemed to have been hit on the bridge, the most vulnerable part of the ship. The entire area was in flames.

"Enemy weapons systems have been disabled," yelled one of the crew members, "We're ready to bring this bad boy to the bottom of the ocean."

"Wait," called the Captain, "Bring us closer in."

The _USS Zumwalt_ approached the smoking _USS Argus_ , until they were only about five hundred meters apart. By now, the Captain could see everyone on board the ship with a telescope. And he did not believe what he saw.

"Aliens…" he murmured, "They're fucking aliens!"

"What?" asked one of the crew members, "You're joking, right?"

"Look for yourself!" said the captain, handing him the telescope, "Look!"

The crew member's eyes widened, "What the…"

But as much as Captain James hated to admit it, it was definitely an alien. He saw who was on the bridge. It was a person, completely clad in white armor from head to toe. It was nothing like he's ever seen in all his military career. But there was someone else. He recognized him immediately as George. They were holding George hostage…

George was the one who sent the SOS signals. The captain's mind flew. George, who was a bad guy, was being held hostage by an alien. What about Johnny and Mavis? Did all this alien stuff concern them?

Captain James set down the telescope, "Fire on their engines, cut their power and leave them dead in the water. We won't offer anything, but we'll keep them in check."

His crew members all nodded, and went to their stations. A few seconds later, a shell from the front cannon blew a hole through the _USS Argus_ 's rudder, making it float dead in the water.

The captain watched the ship stop completely. _Let's play the waiting game_ , he thought.


	33. Plans

As Johnny and Mavis neared the location of the wreckage of the _USS Arleigh Burke_ , Johnny began to notice other planes in the area. Most of them were unarmed search planes, but he spotted a few old-looking fighter planes.

At first, Johnny couldn't see where the island was, but then Mavis spotted it with her extra-sensory perception.

"There!" she cried, pointing. Directly ahead of them, was a tiny island, with a lone palm tree growing on it. It looked like one of those stereotypical isolated islands that you would expect to see on a Windows Wallpaper.

Johnny nodded, "I see it," he said, "Looks as if the feds have some soldiers on that island as well."

Sure enough, there were a few soldiers standing on the recognized the soldiers as soldiers that served under the Supreme Leader, with their trademark black body armor and black camouflage pants. Johnny called to the AI, "How much longer until we'll be over the drop zone?"

The AI replied swiftly, "About 45 seconds, would you like stealth systems to stay activated while the doors open?"

Johnny nodded, "Yeah, keep the stealth systems on, don't wanna get shot down anyways."

"Very well, T=30 seconds from drop off, preparing to open back doors, please prepare for potential combat."

Johnny and Mavis retreated to the back door, and waited.

"Ten...nine...eight…"

Mavis looked at Johnny, and grinned, "You know, living in the moment is pretty relaxing, you don't worry about anything."

Johnny smiled, "Yeah."

"Three….two….one….back doors opening."

The back doors opened, and Johnny and Mavis were instantly sucked out into the open air. By now, Johnny was used to free-falling. He angled his body downwards a little and pressed his arms straight against his body, and then flew like a bullet towards the ocean. Behind him, he heard the familiar sound of Mavis turning into a bat.

Mavis yelled through the sound of the wind, "Johnny, angle yourself a little more to the left! We have to land on that island!"

Johnny leaned to the left, but nothing happened, "How do I go to the left?" he yelled. Mavis groaned, and zipped down to where Johnny was. She transformed back into a vampire and grabbed Johnny around the waist, throwing him in the right direction.

As Johnny and Mavis went under the clouds, Johnny saw one of the soldiers on the beach point up at them. A few seconds later, he felt a bullet graze his hand. "Mavis, they're shooting at us!" yelled Johnny, not stopping.

"I see it, I see it!" yelled Mavis. She suddenly saw, with surprising detail thanks to her extra-sensory perception, one of the soldiers take out a walkie talkie and bring it to his mouth-

"No you won't." muttered Mavis. She telekinetically grabbed the walkie talkie and ripped it out of the soldier's hand, throwing it into the ocean. Mavis dodged two more bullets, and turned into a bat to reduce her size.

Johnny suddenly had an idea. He took out his doom blades and activated them. The doom blades would protect him from the bullets. Sure enough, his hands automatically moved to where the doom blade could deflect the bullets. This did, however, slow him down, since it made him less aerodynamic.

About twenty meters from the ground, Johnny finally felt a tugging sensation on his collar, and grinned. Mavis had grabbed him by his shirt and was bringing him down. Using the doom blade, Johnny protected both of them while Mavis did the heavy lifting.

Mavis dropped Johnny about ten feet above the ground. The soldiers were still firing, but were definitely losing confidence. They had seen the wreckage Johnny and Mavis had caused on some of their facilities, and they knew that they alone couldn't fight back.

One of the soldiers suddenly threw his gun aside and drew an energy sword of some kind. It didn't look as strong as a doom blade, but it still looked lethal. He charged at Johnny, his blade raised.

Mavis telekinetically grabbed him and threw him hard against the ground, knocking the wind out of him. Johnny ran and sliced the other two soldiers' guns in half. One of the soldiers did a desperate charge on Mavis, throwing a punch, which Mavis easily dodged. Mavis hit the soldier with her staff and sent him flying into the water.

The last soldier was backing up, fear etched all over his face, "What do you want?!" he screamed at them, "Please-"

Mavis pinned the soldier to the ground, "Why are you here?" she hissed.

The soldier struggled, but Mavis's grip was like steel, "You can't use your hypnosis on me! I-I have special lenses designed for your trickery!"

Mavis was about to say something else, when suddenly, the soldier detonated an EMP bomb on his belt. The EMP itself didn't do anything to either of them, but the small blast was enough to throw Mavis off of him and into the water. Mavis scrambled back up, "I'm fine!" she called to Johnny, even though she had a nasty cut on her forehead, and ran back to the soldier.

The soldier was dying. The majority of the blast had gone into him. Johnny cursed. If this soldier died, then their entire trip would've been made in vain. The soldier gasped, struggling for breath.

Mavis sat down next to the soldier, her expression had softened alot. "Please," she begged the soldier, "We were never terrorists. Please, tell us why you came here."

The soldier coughed, blood coming out of his mouth. "We...we screwed up….opened...interdimensional portal...there-there are thirteen extraterrestrial beings….on this world now…they are more powerful than we'll ever be…"

The soldier looked right at Mavis in the eye, "This...is greater than any of us...I was trying to do what I thought was right…"

The soldier groaned. Blood dribbled out of his mouth. "Please...end me…" he murmured.

Mavis reached out and laid her hand on his chest. There was a blue glow that temporarily surrounded the soldier, then it vanished. The soldier's head leaned over, dead.

Mavis stood back up. Her expression was completely blank. She had killed the soldier telekinetically, but not the way she usually did. This time, she made it painless. She simply stopped all body functions at the same time, effectively giving the soldier a quick and painless death.

Mavis turned to Johnny, "Let's get out of here."

Right on cue, the _Death's Bane_ appeared right in front of the island. Techno wobbled out, "According to my artificial intelligence, your mission seems to be complete. Come on back before our risk of detection grows any higher."

On the _Death's Bane_ , there was much discussion between Techno, Mavis, and Johnny. The news about extraterrestrial beings making it onto earth through a portal seemed outlandish and unrealistic, but they all agreed that it had to be true, with what the feds have been attempting these days. The real issue was what they would do about it.

"We should fight against the extraterrestrial beings," said Johnny, "I mean, if 13 of them can overpower the entire garrison of a facility-"

"We've done that." said Mavis, "It always turned out alright."

"Yeah," said Johnny, "But in those times, we usually weren't directly fighting our way through, we were always sneaking our way through."

Mavis sighed, "I don't want to fight someone else's fight."

Techno intervened, "I'm afraid that I must agree with Master Jonathan, Miss Dracula. For the well-being of the world as a whole, we must face the extraterrestrials."

"But why?" asked Mavis, "The feds will take care of it, they have the entire military behind them!"

Johnny shook his head, "I don't think they'll inform the US military about this. If they do, then the word will eventually spread, and there'll be panic everywhere. We're one of the only people who know about the threat."

Mavis growled, "I hate this type of stuff…". She got up and began pacing the ceiling of the cockpit, "It's always _us_ who has to fight for the world, why can't people just stop being stupid and figure out what's happening?"

Johnny put a hand on Mavis's shoulder, "Mav…" he murmured.

Mavis's expression softened, "I'm sorry...It's just the stress…"

Johnny nodded, "It's fine, we'll discuss this later when we reach Paradise. For now, get some rest in case the feds catch up with us."

Mavis nodded tiredly, "Okay…" she murmured.

* * *

The man behind the desk sighed. "Are we still tracking the _USS Arleigh Burke_?" he impatiently asked the scientist.

The scientist nodded, "Yes sir. It's been moving at a steady pace towards the coast of South America until this morning, when it abruptly stopped."

"Mmm?" murmured the man behind the desk, "It stopped? And why is that?"

"We believe that it suffered from extreme engine failure. Our current status reports show that they have suffered from electrical damage."

The man behind the desk shifted slightly, "They must have a human...they don't know how to use or steer a destroyer...is the _USS Independence_ and the _USS Aegis_ en route yet?"

The scientist nodded, "They left port only an hour ago, sir. We're making communication and status checks every fifteen minutes."

The man behind the desk sighed, "Very well...prepare my personal jet, and get fleet seven fueled up and ready. We need to protect the portal at Bhutan."

The scientist shifted uncomfortably, "Sir, if the extraterrestrials are remotely intelligient, then they would know that we have the capabilities of creating a portal, and because of that, they would come to us to get back to their world."

"That is true…" murmured the man behind the desk, "Send the seventh and eighth fleet to Bhutan to protect the portal."

The scientist nodded fervently, "Of course, sir. I will carry out your orders."

With that, the scientist scrambled out of the room.

The supreme leader sighed. For the first time in his life, a possibility of failure flashed across his mind. He was afraid that his worst fears had come true. One of his own had entered through the portal. He needed to stop him at all costs. It was his job. It was the only way he could repay for what he did that night, over a century ago. He could not fail.

* * *

That night, when Mavis and Johnny came out of the _Death's Bane_ , in Paradise, and fell onto the bed in Headquarters, Johnny took out his phone and noticed another text message from Captain James.

Mavis noticed it as well, "It's probably important, you should read it." she said, nudging Johnny slightly in the ribs.

Johnny nodded and opened up the phone, looking at the text message that Captain James had sent him:

 _Found extraterrestrial life on USS Argus, which is USS Arleigh Burke's sister ship. Current coordinates: 18.58, -117.66. Disabled enemy ship, isolated aliens. Yes, it is CONFIRMED aliens. Idk if it has anything to do with you, please reply if it does._

Johnny glanced at Mavis. "Guess the Captain got to the aliens before us," said Johnny, shrugging, "Wanna reply?"

Mavis nodded, "As long as it's encrypted…"

Johnny typed back a response, making it as short and as concise as possible.

 _Received msg, Yes, it does. Keep aliens isolated, we might go, depends on plan._

Johnny hit the send button, hoping his message was clear, but at the same time, short enough. He didn't want some government hackers to find his message and instantly know what he was talking about. After making sure the message sent, Johnny set his phone down and lay back down on the bed, where Mavis leaned over and kissed him.

Johnny smiled, "You're beautiful, Mavis...I still sometimes find it hard to believe that I'm lucky enough to end up with someone like you…"

Mavis laughed, "Stop it," she said, snuggling up to him, "we've been through alot together, anyways…"

Johnny sighed, "Mavis...it was a really good thing you did there, back on that island, with the soldier."

Mavis didn't respond at first. "He was a good person," said Mavis, "but I gave him what he deserved the most. Rest."

Johnny nodded, "That's what I mean." he said.

Mavis suddenly turned towards him, "You know, with all this death and destruction, I really hate to say this...but we are, you know, technically travelling the world right now...I mean, we discovered an island."

Johnny responded after a little, "I'm living my dream right now...a life of adventure, exploration, curiosity...you're only gonna be 119 once, right? Gotta live it."

Mavis gave a small laugh at the reference Johnny made, back to when she saw her first sunrise. "It's all thanks to you that I have a life right now, Johnny…"

Johnny was about to respond, but when he turned around, he saw her already asleep, still snuggled against his side.

* * *

 **School week is starting again, so I won't be publishing as often :(**


	34. Reality

Captain James should've been bored. Floating in the middle of the ocean with another ship that couldn't move was supposed to be boring. But the fact that he had found aliens always kept him alert. He had received Johnny's text message, and was now waiting for him to respond again with his plan.

One of his crew members suddenly perked up, "Sir, two military vessels have appeared on our radar, they're heading straight for us."

The Captain cursed. The last thing he needed was for the Supreme Leader or someone else to interfere in this. It would mess up the plan. "Go maximum speed," he said, "We can't let anyone see us."

The crew member nodded and turned back to working the radar. The _USS Zumwalt_ 's nuclear engines turned back on, and soon enough they were speeding along the water once again. Another crew member suddenly perked up again, "Sir, they're firing missiles...at us."

The captain didn't hesitate. He had suspected that if he caught them on his scopes, then the enemy would find him on their scopes. "Activate anti-missile defenses," he said, "arm and ready all cannons and missile pods."

"Yes sir."

A second later, the missile came into view, flying at the _USS Zumwalt_ at several thousand miles per hour. The ship's anti-missile guns immediately detected it and swiveled upwards, firing. A second later, there was a loud explosion, and the missile blew up above them.

"Three more missiles incoming!" yelled the crew member. Sure enough, three streaks of light appeared above them again, coming straight for them. But even so, the _USS Zumwalt_ was built for this type of thing. Within seconds, the three missiles had been destroyed.

By now, the two other destroyers came into view. They were missile destroyers, like the _USS Zumwalt_. By now, the captain was a good mile away from the _USS Argus_ , and watched it from afar, dreading what would happen.

The destroyers seemed to have given up on destroying the _Zumwalt_ , but also seemed to take interest in the other ship. One of the destroyers dropped anchor right next to the disabled _USS Argus_.

"No…" murmured the Captain, "They're going to try to board the ship…"

Three squads of soldiers, the captain instantly recognized them as working under the Supreme Leader, came out in speedboats and went to the base of the destroyer, tossing ropes over.

"They're going to die." said the Captain. He knew that if he signalled the destroyers, they wouldn't listen, so he couldn't do anything.

The squads boarded the destroyer and entered the side of the bridge tower. The captain waited. One minute...two minutes…

 _BOOM_

The captain looked up as a massive fireball blew the entire bridge of the _USS Argus_ apart. Through the telescope, he saw the alien in full body armor grab soldiers and throw them into the water with ease. Around him, dozens of other robed guards fought, killing the rest of the boarding party.

The alien leaped up into the air, landing on the other destroyer, and entered their bridge. A few minutes later, that destroyer began moving again, opening fire on its sister ship and disabling it.

The captain didn't hesitate, "Chase it!" he yelled, "Fire missile pods, give 'em everything we got!"

Missiles, shells, and gunfire flew at the destroyer which was fleeing, but this time, they didn't make it. The shells missed, and the missiles were destroyed by their anti-missile guns.

The captain growled. _This is gonna be a long battle_ , He thought

* * *

Mavis woke up to Johnny turning on the TV that morning. She groaned and got up. Even after nearly two months on the run, she still wasn't used to not being nocturnal.

"Oh hey, Mavis." said Johnny, "Uuuuh...the Captain sent me another text."

"Really?" asked Mavis, confused. It wasn't usual for texts to come this often from anyone, since they were supposed to be in hiding.

"Yeah, read this." said Johnny, tossing Mavis the phone, which she telekinetically grabbed in the air and brought it down to eye level.

 _Change in plan: two other ships from supreme leader came, attempted to board alien's ship. Alien overpowered them, took over their destroyer. I am in pursuit now. They have a direct trajectory for Antofagasta, Chile in four hours._

Mavis gave Johnny his phone back, "Well, come on, let's get moving before they reach the mainland!"

Johnny nodded, and immediately the two of them began packing up their battle relics and boarded the _Death's Bane_. Techno also wobbled in behind them, carrying the relic bag and rearming the _Death's Bane._

As Johnny sat down at the pilot's seat, he winced. He felt his stomach, where the bullet wound was, and looked down at it. The veins that were coming out of it had completely vanished, but now it was replaced by a nasty purple scar.

Mavis noticed this. "Johnny, let me see the wound." she said, lifting up Johnny's shirt lightly and looking at it. "Mmmm...its gotten better, but I wouldn't push it…"

Johnny rolled his eyes, "I'm fine, Mavey, just as long as nobody shoots me there again I should be fine."

"Whatever you say.". Mavis signalled to Techno, who activated the engines. Soon enough the two of them were flying high above the Atlantic Ocean at Mach 5, heading straight for the aliens.

As they flew, Mavis levitated random things in the cockpit with her telekinesis for fun. Bullets, guns, food, particles of dust. Johnny watched her with envy.

"You know, for a human, telekinesis is only a dream," said Johnny, "we would all want it given the chance."

Mavis shrugged, "It's not _that_ good," she said, "It's difficult to master, and it takes lots of time and energy to use."

"Yeah, but you've gotten really good at it," said Johnny, "I mean, much better than how you were when we left the hotel."

Mavis winced. Any mention of the hotel brought back nostalgic memories. "I dunno…" she murmured. But as she thought about it, she knew that Johnny was right. She _was_ much stronger. She had pushed her boundaries farther than she thought were possible. Before she left the hotel, she could only lift rocks and small objects with telekinesis. Now, she could start an engine, snap a neck, and create shockwaves. In a way, all the running and fighting had given her an advantage.

Johnny looked back at the cockpit window, scanning the area below them, "We look clear, so we should go and eat some breakfast. You have the duplication stone, right?"

Mavis snapped her fingers, and the duplication stone came whizzing out of the suitcase. It landed in Johnny's lap. "Alright...and….here we go." said Johnny, pressing the stone against the chicken noodle soup cans. Soon enough the two of them were drinking chicken noodle soup, steeling themselves for their first glance at the aliens.

* * *

The man behind the desk growled. He was frustrated by his men's failures. "So the disabled destroyer is dead in the water, and the other one has been taken over by the aliens?"

The scientist nodded, nervous. "Yes sir...and we also made contact with another ship. The _USS Zumwalt_."

"Interesting…" the man behind the desk sighed, "Forget about the _Zumwalt_ for now, send out a rescue party for the _Aegis_ , and get them back. Is there anything else?"

"Yes sir," said the scientist, "Our men on the _Aegis_ believe they saw George under hostage by the aliens. Although these may simply be illusions, I think we should take that into account if we attack their destroyer."

The man behind the desk waved his hands, "George is resourceful, he will find a way out eventually. I have full confidence in him," he pondered for a moment, "Deploy the eighth fleet, send them to intercept the aliens. We cannot let them live."

The scientist seemed surprised by this, but didn't question it. "Yes sir!" he said, and then asked, "Is there anything else?"

"No, go and carry out my orders."

The scientist scrambled out of the room, clutching his clipboard. The supreme leader sighed and sat back in his chair. The aliens arriving on Earth had jarred his vision. His delusions of world conquest. He now knew what he had to do. He had to make up for what he had caused, that night 119 years ago.

* * *

As the _Death's Bane_ flew high over the border of South America, Mavis couldn't help but wonder what the aliens had to do with them. _Why does it have anything to do with us?_ She kept asking herself, _Why do we have to do anything?_

Next to her, Johnny sat at the pilot's seat, relaxing a little. He seemed more lax ever since he received the antidote to the poison, probably some side effect had caused him to act like that. She had just finished her bowl of chicken noodle soup with ease, swallowing four bowls of it without a problem.

"AI, how much longer until we reach Antofagasta?" called Johnny, looking up.

The AI replied quickly, "At current speed, we should reach the designated location in four hours. However, if you allow me to activate Mach 5, we could get there in thirty minutes. If you want to go Mach 5, however, we will be out of cloak for ten minutes due to energy recalibration."

Johnny looked to Mavis, "What d'ya think?" he asked, "your call."

Mavis shook her head, "We need that cloak to keep us hidden. The only reason we haven't been shot down twenty times over is because of the cloak."

Johnny nodded, "Alright then, AI, dont go Mach 5, but push the engines a little."

The engines began humming a little louder, and the _Death's Bane_ whizzed through the skies over Brazil. Right as this happened, however, Johnny spotted something in the distance. Something big…

Mavis gasped, "What is _that?_ " she whimpered, pointing.

Johnny couldn't believe his eyes. A massive convoy of huge airships that looked as if they came out of some sort of sci fi movie. Each one was about the size of a football field, and had massive engines underneath them. Even more impressive, or scary, was the fact that they were, indeed, flying.

Mavis immediately turned to the AI, "What the hell is that?" she asked frantically.

The AI responded calmly, "It is an airship of unknown design or origin. Reports show that they are much more technologically advanced than any other vehicle in the world."

Johnny glanced at Mavis, "This has to be something to do with the Supreme Leader," he growled, "They really have achieved something…"

The airships were moving slower than them, but this offered little comfort to Mavis. She was gripping the seat so hard her hands had turned white. She also happened to notice the massive, 14-inch gun turrets that were mounted on the sides of every single one. In total, there were seven airships. Six small ones, and one airship that was at least twice as large as the other two.

"Let's get outta here," said Johnny, "AI, take us to Mach 3, or whatever the speed is that allows us to stay cloaked."

"As you wish," said the AI, "Engaging supersonic engines...now."

The _Death's Bane_ whizzed through the skies until they were out of view of the ships, Mavis dropped back onto her seat. "Does _anyone_ know about this?" she asked, "Anyone from the public?"

Johnny shook his head, "Probably not, but why were they here? Why did they decide to fly their airships here?"

The AI intervened, "According to my calculations, the trajectory of the airships put them onto a direct route to Antofagasta, Chile, which also happens to be where we're going."

Mavis sighed, "Guess the supreme Leader had the same idea as we had," she said, "But...it also means we have a common enemy now. Maybe we could make peace-"

"Mavis," said Johnny, "We can't do that...listen, do you really think they can be trusted? The supreme leader?"

Mavis went on, "But now we have a common goal, something that we can work together for! We don't have to continue fighting."

"Mavey…these are the people who killed both our families." said Johnny.

Mavis's mind cleared. She remembered her dad, and her friends from the hotel. All dead, because of the Supreme Leader. She remembered Johnny's family, who were so kind to her...all dead. Burnt. Turned to a pile of charcoal probably.

"I...okay…." murmured Mavis, trying to hide her emotions.

Johnny noticed what effect his words had on Mavis and looked at the ground ashamedly, "I'm sorry…" he muttered.

Mavis rolled her eyes, "It's fine...sometimes we have to get a reality check anyways…"

Mavis wasn't lying. She had almost forgotten that her family was dead. Johnny clearly hadn't. While Johnny sometimes envied her powers, Mavis couldn't help but wish that she was more like Johnny. Always facing reality, rather than focusing on herself. While thinking, Mavis accidently bent a spoon in half with her telekinesis, causing it to break and make a loud clanging noise. Johnny jumped.

"Oh...so sorry, didn't mean that," said Mavis, "Just...thinking."

Johnny smiled, "Wicked...lethal even when you don't want to be."

Mavis laughed, "Stop it Johnny...you can probably still beat me up in a fight. Your Kugun is getting better." she said.

Johnny smiled lightly, "Nah, you could probably still kick my ass."

Mavis and Johnny spent the next thirty minutes laughing, throwing jokes and insults back at each other, wishing reality could just stop. Wishing that they could just have normal lives once again.


	35. Death

George couldn't believe his luck. His horrible, horrible luck. He wished he had died on board the USS Aegis, but no. The alien and his little friends had to have carried him to the other ship, which he now recognized as the USS Independence. As he steered the ship towards the coast of Chile, at Antofagasta, he had to be careful regarding his position. Missiles were crashing into the waters all around them, or being shot down by the ship's automatic anti-missile guns.

The aliens, clearly not used to the ways of Earth, hissed every time a missile came near the ship. The alien clad head to toe in white futuristic-looking armor kept pacing the bridge, watching the horizon, until-

"Finally," George heard the armored alien say, "There, my followers, is where we must go."

Ahead of the USS Independence, a mountain line, with land and trees, came into view. It was the coast of Antofagasta. The leader of the aliens, the armored one, pointed at him, "You, keep steering the ship towards the land."

The coast of Antofagasta kept growing nearer and nearer. George began to panic. He couldn't let these alien beasts onto the mainland. What would they do? Kill civilians, slaughter families, burn towns. George wasn't a stranger to brutally murdering millions of people, but this was different.

The leader stared at him, "Am I clear?"

George looked back at him, keeping a smooth face on himself, "Sure." he muttered, trying not to arouse suspicion. He thought of how he could weasel his way out of this one. Perhaps he should ground the ship and hopefully kill the aliens? But that would kill him as well. Maybe he could sneak out? But the doors were all covered by the leader's guards. But then, he had an idea. A risky idea…

George silently flipped a few switches on the main control panel. The aliens didn't notice it, but what George actually did was open up the fuel tanks underwater, causing oil to leak out of the ship. Silently, the ship grinded to a halt, as the oil ran out completely. Around the ship, George felt the missile bombardments grow heavier, but the anti-missile guns were keeping up.

"What the hell is this?" asked the leader impatiently, turning on George. Around him, his guards also drew their energy swords. George feigned confusion, "Wait...there appears to be an engine problem...let me fix it…"

The leader looked at him suspiciously. "This ship better be moving in thirty minutes. If it isn't, I'll cut your head off and swim to shore myself."

George, feigning fear, nodded, and slowly walked over to the door, where the guard made way, suspiciously looking at him. George walked down to the engine room, where he shut the door behind him. Now all he had to do was stall, and hope for a miracle.

"Fifteen minute warning." said the AI, as the Death's Bane flew towards Antofagasta, "I hope you guys are ready."

Mavis and Johnny, who were just making out, scrambled up, Mavis telekinetically grabbing her staff and Johnny feeling his belt to make sure that his doom blades were secure in there. Ahead of them, Johnny saw the coast of Antofagasta, but didn't see any ship.

"AI, scan the area for military ships," said Johnny, "Search specifically for the USS Zumwalt."

Johnny knew that the USS Zumwalt would probably be near the ship that the aliens were on, since James was chasing it.

"Scan complete, there are four Chilean Destroyers docked at port, and I have picked up signs of two American military destroyers farther out at sea, the USS Independence and the USS Zumwalt."

Johnny looked at Mavis. It seemed as if Captain James was correct. The aliens were drawing near. "AI, bring the Death's Bane to where the USS Independence is." said Johnny.

The Death's Bane began flying out towards the ocean, and twenty seconds later, two destroyers came into view on the horizon. As they drew closer, Johnny noticed that one was at a complete stop, with a giant puddle of purplish blue liquid surrounding the ship. The other one, the USS Zumwalt, was circling the ship, but not firing. It appeared as if the Zumwalt had ran out of ammunition.

Mavis was also watching the scene. "What's that blue stuff?" she asked, pointing at the puddle of liquid around the USS Independence.

Johnny, at first, was also confused about the liquid. But then it came to him. Why the ship was at a halt. The ship must've suffered some sort of engine damage, in which the oil that ran the ship must've somehow leaked.

"The ship must've leaked," said Johnny, "It's the only explanation. Otherwise it wouldn't be at a complete stop."

Mavis nodded, "So...what do we do?"

Johnny shrugged, then called up to the AI, "get us down to the Independence, keep us cloaked at all times."

The Death's Bane silently flew down to the disabled ship, hovering a few feet in front of it. By now, Johnny could make out who was on the deck. He immediately picked out the aliens. Twelve robed soldiers, and one guy in full body armor and a mask, who must've been the leader. They were sitting at the bridge, talking. What were they doing?

When Mavis saw the leader, she felt something. It was like a tingling sensation. Kind of like when she and Johnny zinged, except this time, it was dark...cold...bitter…

Mavis shivered, gripping her staff a little more.

Suddenly, one of the guards fixed his stare where the Death's Bane was. Johnny noticed this, and shifted uncomfortably. Mavis watched nervously as the guard continued to stare right at them, then leaned forward and said something to the leader.

Johnny knew something was wrong. He immediately reacted, "AI, go up!"

The Death's Bane began flying up, right before-

Zssh

The entire cockpit of the Death's Bane tilted to one side, being held by some sort of force. Mavis turned around, and saw the leader standing at the bridge, his arm outstretched, holding the Death's Bane with some sort of telekinetic grip. Somehow, they detected their plane, even though it was cloaked.

"Johnny, we have to get out!" yelled Mavis, as the Death's Bane de-cloaked. Johnny nodded, and the two of them ran to the back door, opening it and jumping out. Mavis telekinetically brought Johnny safely to the deck of the ship, then landed right behind him. There, Johnny took out a pistol and shot at the leader, the bullets pinging off the armor as if they were made of rubber, but distracting the leader enough so he would release his grip on the Death's Bane.

The guards began to approach them, activating their weapons and shields. Mavis and Johnny both drew their weapons as well.

"Well, well, well...what do we have here," said the leader, "two military personnel? Trying to sneak onto a ship controlled by me?"

Neither Mavis nor Johnny answered, they simply stood their ground, holding their weapons at the ready. Mavis saw the leader whisper something to his nearest guard. The guard turned and opened a hatch behind himself and clambered down into it.

The leader turned back to them, "Since I am bored right now, let us have introductions. I am emperor Tiberius. No doubt you've been sent to kill me by your militaristic friends. And what is your name?"

Mavis growled, "My name," she said, "is none of your business."

The leader chuckled, "A woman of spirit, I must grant you that. However I'm afraid that whatever training you've received, or however confident you are in your combat expertise, I am at least five times stronger."

Johnny leveled his doom blade, "Why don't you test that theory out?"

The leader sighed, "Why don't I...guards, KILL THEM."

The twelve guards sprang into action, charging at them, but before they could even get near either Mavis or Johnny, Mavis sent a telekinetic shockwave through the guards, knocking them all back. However, unlike regular soldiers, they got up, completely ignoring any pain they might've experienced. However, Johnny could tell that Mavis's telekinesis had surprised them. They now approached with greater caution, leveling their weapons rather than charging blindly.

Johnny made the first move, engaging the first three guards. He immediately regretted it, the guards flying at him with surprising precision. His doom blade blocked all of their attacks, but they were so relentless that it was impossible for him to even attempt an attack without getting cut down.

Mavis, luckily, helped. She grabbed one of the guards with telekinesis, and threw him at the other guards, knocking two more down. She activated her staff and jumped up, landing between four guards and sending a shockwave into the ground when she did land, knocking all four guards back.

The guards got right back up, and attacked. Mavis was also forced on the defensive as well. As she deflected attack after attack, she finally managed to land a hit on one of the guards, smashing his face with the end of her staff. The guard flew back, making a dent on the side of the bridge, but got right back up, reigniting his energy sword.

Next to Mavis, Johnny was holding off two guards on his own. He managed to cut one across the chest, and kicked the other one, but his hits didn't seem to do any damage. The guards' armor was too thick.

Johnny deflected another attack, right as the guard who he cut across the chest managed to land a punch on his face, knocking him down. The other guard walked over to him, raising his sword, when suddenly-

"No you don't."

Mavis materialized right next to the guard who was about to kill Johnny and threw him telekinetically across the ship so hard he literally made a hole in the side of the bridge.

Mavis helped Johnny up, "You okay?" she asked.

Johnny nodded, unfazed, "Yeah, I'm fine." he said.

Just as Johnny said that, however, there was a commotion behind the guards. George burst out of the hatch that the guard had climbed down, wrestling with that same guard. George had a cut on his face, and even more cuts on his arms and legs, but was still fighting ferociously. He yelled, grabbing the guard's energy sword and slashing him across the waist. This hit didn't kill the guard, but sent him flying back into the wall, where he got back up, drawing two small energy knives.

The only thing Johnny could think was, Are you actually kidding me. The one person they happen to have to fight with was George. The same person who had made their lives so difficult. The reason why they had to go through the last month unsupported. But nonetheless, a temporary ally was a temporary ally.

George, Mavis, and Johnny stood together, forming a defensive semicircle at the front of the ship. The leader laughed, "George...you fool. You chose the wrong side in this."

George looked back at him, "I may not have chosen the winning side," he said, glancing at Johnny and Mavis, "But I sure as hell have chosen the right side."

The leader sighed, "What a pity, George...guards, finish them."

The guards closed in, this time approaching in formation. Mavis suddenly had an idea. She abandoned her defensive stance and turned into mist, flying behind the guards and causing confusion within their ranks. She rematerialized, distracting the guards and forcing their formation to break.

Fighting broke out once again, this time with George and Johnny working together. George, although quite wounded, fought like a beast, slashing down two guards, who got right back up. Johnny grabbed the guard who was coming after him and smashed his head against the railing of the ship, causing a dent to appear on the guard's mask.

Mavis, out of everyone, fought the hardest, partly because she was naturally stronger, being a vampire, and partly because she was being attacked the most. Five guards were bearing down on her. As Mavis dodged another slash from an energy sword, another guard managed to stab her in the shoulder with their blade, causing her to cry out in pain and stumble back. The energy blades hurt more than how much she thought they would.

Mavis was about to get up, however, when suddenly-

UUuuhrghhghhh

A low groan cut through the air. It was the sound of metal against metal, the sound of a ship breaking. The entire deck of the USS Independence was thrown to one side, everyone falling to the ground. They had all been too engaged in their battles to even notice the USS Zumwalt, which had literally rammed the USS Independence, after seeing Mavis and Johnny trapped on its deck for such a long time.

There was a loud explosion, as the USS Independence began flooding. On the deck of the Zumwalt, crew members opened fire with 50 caliber machine guns, spraying down the enemy guards. The guards activated their shields and were forced to defend, for just about the first time.

The AI decided that this would probably be a good time to appear, so the Death's Bane rematerialized over the USS Independence, this time launching missiles at its deck. The guards' shields absorbed the missile explosions, but it was enough to buy Johnny and Mavis time in order to reorganize their position.

In that moment, alot of things happened at once. First, a submarine appeared to the side of the USS Independence, ropes were thrown over the side of the ship, and soldiers began climbing onto it. Second, the fleet of airships Johnny and Mavis had seen while coming to Antofagasta appeared above them. Third, the alien leader used telekinesis to destroy the entire bridge of the USS Zumwalt, effectively killing most of who were in the bridge.

As soldiers poured onto the deck, firing their guns, the guards were forced to deal with them. The soldiers were no match in regards to fighting skill, but they outnumbered the guards at least twenty to one. George dragged himself over the side and threw himself into the water, where Mavis saw him enter the submarine. She didn't do anything to stop him. He deserved to live, this one time. Meanwhile, the leader himself had entered the fray. He had drawn a lethal looking energy sword and was approaching Mavis and Johnny, slicing through enemy soldiers with ease.

Johnny charged Tiberius, bringing his blade down on his face, but was stopped mid-swing by telekinesis, and was thrown back against the railing, where he got back up, groaning. Mavis activated her staff, growling.

Mavis and Tiberius circled each other, watching. Waiting. Tiberius had seen Mavis fight, and knew that she was a warrior. He didn't want to do something rash and get himself killed.

Mavis initiated the fight, slashing at Tiberius's legs with her staff. Tiberius parried the attack easily and made a counterattack with his sword, but Mavis turned to mist and rematerialized, making the sword go through her mist form. She struck Tiberius in the face with the base of the staff, causing him to stagger back. This seemed to jarr Tiberius's senses. He was an unbeatable warrior. He could not lose to some girl.

Mavis ran up, swinging her staff down, hard. Tiberius dodged the strike and slashed downwards at Mavis, missing her stomach, which is what he was aiming for, but hitting her legs, causing Mavis to cry out with pain and stumble back. Johnny ran in, activating his doom blades again, but was no match for Tiberius. A few seconds later, and Johnny had been thrown back yet again. Tiberius continued to approach Mavis, who raised her staff weakly. Tiberius slashed down with his sword, knocking the staff out of Mavis's hand, then grabbed Mavis by the neck and began choking her.

"You were a good adversary," said Tiberius, "But in the end, you are just a weak, stupid,-UGH!"

Out of nowhere, Captain James had ran in and tackled Tiberius, knocking him down. The captain looked terrible, his uniform torn up and blood streaking his face and hair, but still fought with immense ferocity. The Captain pulled out a gun, and shot Tiberius's mask. Tiberius roared and knocked the gun out of James's hands, and activated his energy sword, stabbing James right through the chest.

"NO!"

Mavis tried to run to James, but was stopped by Johnny, who restrained her, pulling her back into the Death's Bane, which had opened its doors right behind them. Under usual circumstances, Mavis would be able to break free of Johnny's arms, but something about James dying had caused her bones to go limp. Another person dead because of them. Another burden to carry.

Captain James looked right at Mavis and Johnny. As Johnny watched his face, streaked with blood and grime, he saw no fear. He saw resolve. Captain James died right there, in the midst of everything.

The Death's Bane's engines began to power up, and they began to fly away. Above them, the airships opened fire on what remained of the sinking USS Independence, and the smoking USS Zumwalt. There was a bright flash of light as the 14-inch shells bombarded the two destroyers. When the light stopped, there was nothing left. Nothing at all


	36. Three Sides

Mavis sat on the co-pilot seat of the _Death's Bane_ , watching the Airships move out above her. Luckily, she and Johnny were under the protection of cloak, so the airships couldn't see them. Mavis was crying, tears streaking down her face. Another person, dead because of them. Johnny was watching her with anxiety, "Mavey, James took that path...we couldn't stop him."

Mavis shook her head, "He didn't have to! We're the reason he got killed!"

Johnny grabbed her arm, "First off, we aren't the reason he got killed, that's the alien's fault. Second off, it was his choice to run in and save you. He knew what he was facing, and he probably knew that he wasn't going to survive."

Mavis cried into her lap, not responding. She knew that what Johnny said was probably correct, but she didn't want to face it.

Johnny's face softened a little, "Here," he said, handing Mavis a tissue, "Think about it on the bright side, the aliens are dead now at least."

Mavis shook her head, "They aren't."

"What?" Johnny looked confused, "Mavey, you saw the shells that hit the ship. You saw the destruction they caused."

Mavis didn't give any immediate reaction, but after a few seconds, she said, "Well...it's hard to explain, but after the shells hit, I _felt_ the aliens, and their life force. They aren't dead."

Johnny didn't respond. At first, he thought Mavis was just seeing stuff after all that happened, but then Mavis said, "I felt James die as well.".

Johnny tilted his head a little, "I think," he said, "That you're getting a new vampire power."

Mavis didn't seem thrilled or happy about this, "Yeah, but at what cost? James's death is what caused the power to activate. I would rather not have it."

Johnny frowned, "Listen, Mavey, this is a war. People are going to die. As long as it's not you, I'm fine with it…"

Mavis sighed, "I know, it's just that so many people are dying, on both sides. And it's just for me, a vampire, and you, the husband of a vampire. Why can't they just leave us alone?"

Johnny shrugged, "Don't ask me...humans are stupid."

Mavis laughed bitterly, "Only some humans are stupid...others are great. Like you."

Johnny kissed Mavis quickly, "I really hope you're right," he said, "anyways, get some sleep. You fought hard."

Mavis nodded, and slowly began to fall asleep, hoping that when she woke up, she wouldn't have to fight again. Hopefully.

* * *

Mavis had a dream that night. She was standing in front of two caves that were on the side of a mountain. The caves were huge, each one standing twenty feet tall. In each cave was a different scene.

In one cave, Mavis saw her mom and dad, sitting at the head of a dinner table. All around the dinner table were other friends. Mavis saw monsters who she recognized. Wayne, Griffin, even Blobby was there. Then there were also humans. Captain James, Gerschiv, and the other insurgents who had died. All of them, laughing and telling jokes at the dinner table. It was a scene that made her very nostalgic.

In the other cave, Mavis saw death and destruction. Aliens fought humans. Blood and gore spilled everywhere. She saw the dead bodies of all who she loved. Smoke and the smell of burning flesh came to her nose. The screams of wounded soldiers were heard by her, amplified a thousand times into a horrible, dark theme.

Mavis heard a voice.

 _Choose_

Mavis didn't hesitate. She went straight for the cave with her family, straight for the cave with all her friends. As soon as she entered it, all the eyes in the room went straight up to her. Mavis was expecting faces filled with joy, or pride, and she was correct. Immediately, Dracula stood up, clapping his hands, and offered Mavis a seat at the table.

As Mavis sat there, with her family and friends she noticed one thing. Where was Johnny? This wasn't right. Out of everyone here, why is Johnny the only one being excluded. Then she realized what this was. This was death.

Mavis stood up, "You aren't real," she said loudly, "None of you are. You're all dead."

The talking all died immediately. Mavis's mom and dad were staring at her with stony expressions, and so were her friends. Mavis's dad stood up, except now, he seemed taller and more sinister than before. Mavis stood her ground, as Dracula approached her. She noticed a tinge of crimson on the side of his eyes. Mavis's dad lunged, his claws outstretched, going for Mavis's neck-

Mavis shot up straight from her seat. Johnny was leaning over her, looking concerned, and jumped back. "Woah, Mav, you okay?"

Mavis nodded weakly, "I'm fine, I'm fine...just dreams."

Mavis expected Johnny to ask questions, but this time, he didn't. He simply sat on his seat and sighed, "Yeah, I've been getting dreams as well. Human dreams aren't based off of reality though."

Mavis shrugged, "You don't know that."

She sat back down, thinking of the dream. What did it mean? Maybe it _was_ just a product of her imagination. She knew that her father would never attack her. In the corner, the rubber ball relic had turned yellow, which meant "Safe".

Johnny flipped a few switches, "Anyways, before you woke up, I was gonna tell you that we're almost back to Paradise."

Mavis's mind cleared. Paradise. A place she could call home. She smiled lightly, "Alright, lets start descending then."

The _Death's Bane_ began descension, and soon enough they were back on Paradise. Techno whizzed out of his recharge station and began flying around, "Where were you two going? What's happened to the plane?" he exclaimed, when he saw the many bullet holes and scratch marks the Death's Bane had to endure. Part of the wing was still bent thanks to Tiberius's telekinesis.

Johnny shrugged, "We've been out and around, just repair the _Death's Bane_ , and get it in full functioning capacity again. We'll probably need it soon."

Mavis shuddered, thinking about how much fighting they would be doing in the next few days. Hopefully not that much, but from Johnny's tone, he made it sound as if he had alot of fighting planned.

Now that Mavis was back on the shores of Paradise, she realized the true extent of her new power. At first, she thought that she could only sense when people died. But now, she could sense life as well. She could feel every tree and every tiny animal that lived on the island. A tiny bundle of life, hidden by the ocean.

Mavis and Johnny walked out onto the beach. Behind them, Techno was flying around, repairing the _Death's Bane_. Paradise, however beautiful it was, was always a bittersweet place for Mavis. It was a home, but it was also a grim reminder that she would never see the hotel again.

As Mavis and Johnny went into headquarters, Mavis could only wonder what Tiberius and the Supreme Leader were doing, and what she could do to stop them. Both of them were evil. Both of them needed to burn.

* * *

"George," said the man behind the desk, "I see you've survived your injuries despite you little...masquerade with the aliens."

George, who had a splint on one arm and a cast on another, didn't seem fazed at all, "They were fools, if they had been any smarter they would've killed me."

"Hmph," the man behind the desk chuckled, "You're a man of talent, I'll grant you that. But tell me, what do the aliens want?"

George seemed surprised by this question, "I'm not sure...they never told me what they wanted...they do seem to be looking for someone though…"

The man behind the desk leaned forward, clearly interested, "Mmm? And who is that person whom they are so interested in?"

"Sir, I know this is going to sound crazy...but I think they're after the vampire." said George, "I mean, I did hear their leader say something about Mavis Dracula...something about revenge."

The Supreme Leader's worst fears were confirmed. He tapped his desk, "They must be stopped. If they get to our portal in Bhutan, then they will unleash untold horrors upon this world. Deploy two more fleets to defend the facility at Bhutan, and send search parties into Chile."

George was surprised by the Supreme Leader's clear fear of the aliens, "Sir, our fleet probably disintegrated the aliens. Don't you think it's a little, forgive me, rash, to send out search parties into a foreign country based off of assumptions?"

The Supreme Leader held his hand up, and George fell silent, "Does it appear," hissed the Supreme Leader, "that I _care_ about what the Chileans think? If those aliens _are_ alive, then humanity itself is at stake. We must take precautions to make sure they are dead."

George looked as if he wanted to say something, but stopped himself. He bowed, "It will be done."

The Supreme Leader sighed, "Go, carry out my orders. Find the aliens. They are alive."

* * *

Tiberius didn't know how much more swimming he could do. After he got blown off the destroyer, he woke up and found himself 300 feet underwater. Naturally, he was able to breath underwater, so swimming to shore should've been easy. Except it wasn't.

Three miles of swimming really got to him, but eventually, the sand finally began to slope upwards, and Tiberius finally broke the surface. Behind him, eleven other guards also surfaced, brushing off sand and water from their naturally waterproof armor.

"Where's the last guard?" he asked the nearest guard. The guard shrugged, and replied, "I think he may have been disintegrated in the blast."

Tiberius cursed under his breath. So maybe the humans are more advanced than he thought. But that didn't matter. Tiberius began to make his way up the beach. It was an isolated area, with a dense treeline and a small cabin nearby.

Tiberius turned to his guards, "Come on, we're going to hike through this area, and find somewhere of militaristic importance."

However, this wasn't Tiberius's true goal. The girl he had fought on the destroyer seemed familiar. At first, he didn't want to accept it. He wanted to believe that the girl was just a normal soldier. But he doubted it. Unless his senses were truly failing him, he believed that the girl was a vampire. She had telekinesis, could turn into mist, and had very fast reaction times. All of which were signs of a vampire. Tiberius smiled underneath his mask.

Mavis Dracula. The girl that he's been hunting for over a century by now.

Tiberius didn't have time to waste. If he was to find Mavis's location, he must act quick. He began briskly hiking towards the mountains, aiming to reach a city by tomorrow at least. When he did, he would destroy the entire place, to force the government to come to him. When the military did this, he would capture their leader and force the leader to tell him where Mavis was.

As Tiberius began marching towards the mountains, what he didn't know was that there were soldiers already looking for him, right in the mountains, where he was heading at that moment.

* * *

That night, Mavis and Johnny crashed in Headquarters, enjoying the feeling of sleeping on a bed again. As Mavis stared at the ceiling, the only thing she could wonder was what Tiberius was doing at that time.

Johnny saw her, and read her mind instantly. Being the husband of a 119 year old vampire made you good at empathizing. "Mavey, don't worry about the aliens, they can't reach us here."

Mavis sighed, "Yeah, you're right...it's just that I feel as if I've seen Tiberius before…"

Johnny shrugged, "You just came out of a stressful battle, don't overwork yourself over things you think you've seen."

Mavis shook her head, "It's not like that! It's as if...I've actually seen him."

Johnny sighed, "Mavis, you should get some sleep, he's not going to reach you here. We're safe, I promise."

Mavis smiled slightly at that comment. It was true. Out of all the places in the world, this small island, Paradise, was the only place they could rest without being paranoid. She snuggled up to Johnny, "Thanks...you're right, I'm probably seeing things...I'll sleep now…"

Johnny leaned down and kissed Mavis, "I'll always be here for you," he said, "go to sleep, I'll stay awake to work on some stuff."

Under normal circumstances, Mavis would insist on staying awake and helping Johnny, but now, she was far too tired for even that. She nodded sleepily, and closed her eyes.


	37. Terror

Mavis woke up to the microwave in headquarters going off. As soon as she opened her eyes, she was greeted with the site of Johnny making popcorn. On the main table, two bowls of chicken noodle soup were already cooling off, along with two glasses of orange juice. The duplication relic had become very useful lately.

Johnny looked over, and saw her, "Oh hey Mavey, I was just making breakfast. You slept well last night. No dreams?"

Mavis shook her head, "Not really...I didn't have any dreams last night luckily…"

Johnny nodded, "Well, that's good. Come on, lets eat and talk about what we do next. I have a few ideas on what we _could_ do."

Mavis telekinetically threw on her clothes and went over to the table. She began drinking her chicken noodle soup, "So, what's your idea?"

Johnny pulled up a map on the TV, "So...I think we should make another trip back to DC."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Not that place again, we've been there too many times. Last time, Gerschiv got caught by the feds and we went into another goose chase across the US."

Johnny winced, remembering Gerschiv, "Well, I don't think they'll be expecting us. We've been off the grid for about two weeks by now, they have no idea where we're hiding when we aren't fighting."

Mavis sighed, "Okay so if we go to DC...then what?"

"Then," Johnny pulled up a photo of a familiar building: the Pentagon, "we pay a visit back to our federal buddies, and find out where the Supreme Leader is. Then we go to the Supreme Leader, and turn his face into an overcooked waffle, _then_ we take care of the aliens."

Mavis didn't like the idea. It was risky, it involved fighting, and it involved her least favorite city on the surface of the planet. But she didn't have a better idea.

"Fine," said Mavis, "But we're going to have the _Death's Bane_ on standby in case things take a bad turn, got it?"

Johnny nodded, "Alright. We'll leave in ten minutes, alright?"

Mavis shrugged, "Sure."

Ten minutes later saw the two of them boarding the _Death's Bane_ , along with Techno. Johnny called up to the AI, "Bring us to Washington DC, Mach 3, keep up cloaked the whole way."

The AI replied swiftly, "Very well, but I want to warn you: According to recent data scans of the media, there is increased security in Washington DC due to your very persistent interest in it."

Johnny glanced at Mavis, who was looking back at him, "It's fine, just get don't let us get detected," said Johnny, "And make sure to have all weapons armed in case."

"Very well, starting up engines now." said the AI. A second later, the engines started whirring, and soon enough they were far above the clouds, flying towards Washington DC.

Thirty minutes later, however, the AI spoke up again, "Master Jonathan and Miss Dracula, I have urgent news from the media."

Johnny glanced up, frowning. Whenever the AI had "urgent news" for them, it was usually pretty significant. "What is it?" he asked.

On the main screen in the cockpit, a news channel opened up.

 _Today, at 5:47 am, twelve people of unknown name or origin walked into the small town of La Serena, and burnt the entire place to the ground. Casualties of this pointless and ruthless slaughter are estimated to be over 2,000 men, women, and children, along with over 438 million dollars worth of property damage and destruction. Chilean authorities are urging the nearby towns to evacuate, as they fear that the twelve people are moving on. This is considered to be the most outrageous act of terrorism since 9/11. Investigators are still unclear on who or what attacked the town._

The news channel cut to photos of the town. There were bodies strewn about everywhere. The scene made Mavis's grip on the pilot seat tighten. She didn't know that such destructive force could even exist in twelve aliens. On the bodies, she immediately recognized the wounds that were inflicted.

"They were the aliens alright," said Johnny, "they were killed by energy swords.". Johnny shifted uncomfortably in his seat, "AI, mark the location of La Serena, but continue on current trajectory."

"As you wish, Master Jonathan." said the AI.

Mavis shifted, "We should kill the aliens," she said, "They're more evil than the supreme leader."

Johnny looked back at her, "Mav, they're both evil. We need to kill both. No matter what the cost is. They deserve to _die_.". Johnny had a weird look on his face when he said this. His eyes were burning with determination. Mavis watched him, "Johnny…?"

Johnny blinked. "I'm so sorry, Mavis...I didn't mean to sound so harsh…"

Mavis put her hand on Johnny's arm, "It's fine," she said, "you're right, we do need to kill the Supreme Leader first, he's the one who took everything away from us, after all…"

Johnny sighed, "All this fighting...it's necessary, we have to do it. Without us, humanity is screwed."

Mavis noticed how Johnny said _humanity_. It made her remember how she was the last monster. How she was the last of her own kind. It made her feel strange. She was part of an endangered species.

Johnny looked back to the cockpit window, "Anyways, lets stay on track," he said, "We can't afford to lose any time."

Mavis nodded, "Yeah," she said, "Lets bust some skulls open."

* * *

"They _what_?" asked the Supreme Leader, "How strong are they, exactly?"

George stood unfazed by the Supreme Leader's change in attitude, "The aliens are proving extraordinarily strong and resistant to our attacks. They appear to be indestructible."

"And yet, we managed to kill one when we bombarded their destroyer with our airships." said the Supreme Leader, "I'm assuming they can only be killed by extreme firepower?"

George perked up, "Our scientists believe, from biological scans they've taken of the guards, that the secret to their apparent indestructibility is something beyond science."

The Supreme Leader shifted, "You speak of magic," he said, "But I thought that Johnny and Mavis were the only individuals who had access to such things!"

George shook his head, "It appears as if the dimension our portal opened up to contains large amounts of magical properties. We cannot be certain, however, and my scientists are still trying to come up with a scientific way to approach them."

The Supreme Leader sighed, "Then for now we do not know any specific way of defeating them. Withdraw the squadrons I've sent into Chile, call them back to the Brazilian border. We must defend that border under all circumstances no matter what. It is imperative."

George nodded, "Alright, how about the Vampire and her human?"

The Supreme Leader looked at him, "What about them?"

"They are still out there, without a trace of their whereabouts, they will certainly strike yet again under the confusion that these aliens have brought us." said George.

The Supreme Leader waved his hands with dismissal, "They are irrelevant to us at our current situation. Right now, we must deal with the biggest problem at hand. The aliens threaten to destroy all of humanity. If my dream of world conquest is to survive, then they must be put down. Mavis and Johnny are...a lesser problem."

George knew something was happening with the Supreme Leader. Some sort of change in attitude. A shift in perspective towards Mavis and Johnny. But he didn't say anything about that.

"Anyways...George, see to it that the Brazilian border is secure. Go personally. The border must hold, or else everything we've worked for is doomed." said the Supreme Leader.

George nodded, "Yes sir." he said.

* * *

As Mavis and Johnny came within 15 minutes of Washington DC, Johnny began asking Techno for certain bits of information that they may need. The leader of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's name was Joseph F. Dunford. He was the person Johnny and Mavis would be going for. He also learned of the other Joint Chiefs of Staff, who were a group of generals that ran the Pentagon.

As the _Death's Bane_ flew high above the city, Johnny suddenly turned to Mavis, giving her one of his doom blades, "Here, since you don't have your staff anymore…"

Mavis winced, "Thanks." she muttered, placing the doom blade on her belt. She already missed her staff. Her personal weapon. Her signature relic.

Mavis's thoughts were interrupted by Techno, "Alright, I'll open the back doors in ten seconds, hurry up and get over there."

Mavis and Johnny made their way to the back of the _Death's Bane_ , and braced for the doors to open. Sure enough, ten seconds after their went to the back, the doors swung out, and the two of them were sucked into the open air.

Johnny, while falling, was more worried about being spotted than failing his landing. He had done free-fall entrances enough to completely control himself in the air. Underneath them, Johnny saw the Pentagon, its walls gleaming white in the sun.

Behind Johnny, Mavis turned into a bat and jetted down until she was far beneath him. When Johnny was thirty feet above the ground, Mavis caught him and slowly lowered him to the ceiling.

Johnny immediately looked around, expecting people to notice him, but immediately relaxed. It was only 7:00 am in the morning, so nobody was there yet. None of the common workers at least. But the Joint Chiefs of Staff were probably there…

Mavis led the way, bringing Johnny to the back entrance, which was locked, and flying under the door as mist, unlocking it for Johnny. After Johnny closed and locked the door behind him, he immediately began to look around for a map.

Soon enough he saw one, a map that was posted on the wall. It was one of those maps you would expect to see in a hotel, with a dot that said "You are here." on it. Johnny immediately located the room where the Joint Chiefs of Staff met, in the very center of the Pentagon.

Mavis saw it as well, and immediately began walking towards the center, forcing a few guards to sleep as she passed them. Johnny quickly followed behind her. He was beginning to recognize the corridors. He even saw the same room in which they had interrogated General Clecius, except now his door didn't have his plaque on it for some reason.

The two of them continued to make their way down the corridors, until suddenly-

 _WARNING: Vampire DNA detected in the Pentagon. This is not a drill. Please evacuate immediately. Garrisons are being deployed._

The intercom blared out the message so suddenly that it caught Johnny and Mavis both by surprise. Johnny cursed himself. He should've been more careful with sneaking into a state-of-the-art military compound.

Mavis, however, didn't hesitate. She turned to mist, flying down the corridor at supersonic speeds, and flew straight to the Chief of Staff room, where she punched the door open. In the room, she saw the Joint Chiefs of Staff hurrying through a door in the back of the room, with soldiers covering them.

"No you don't!" yelled Mavis, and telekinetically grabbed Joseph F Dunford. Before anyone else could react, Mavis had forced them into sleep.

Joseph looked scared. "What do you want?" he yelled, "I-I won't tell you anything-"

"Oh yes you will." said Mavis, "Where. Is. The. Supreme. Leader."

She punctuated every word, putting in as much effort as possible into the hypnosis. Behind Mavis, Johnny ran in, shutting the door behind him. "Mavis, hurry, there are soldiers everywhere!" he yelled.

Joseph was struggling, his face turning purple, "I….I won't tell you!" he yelled.

Mavis waved his hands in front of his eyes, "But you will…" she said, "Tell me."

Joseph gasped for breath as if he was choking, but eventually words started to form, "I...He's...in...South America." he spurted out.

Mavis shook her head, "Where exactly?" she asked, "I want specific cities, towns, even coordinates."

"He's...augh….he's in….he's in RIO." yelled Joseph, "Rio...Brazil…"

Mavis glanced at Johnny, "Know where that is?" she asked. Being a vampire, she still didn't know much of the outside world.

Johnny nodded, "I've been there twice in my life," he said, "Come on, lets get outta-"

 _BOOM_

The door behind Johnny was blasted open with a grenade, and three soldiers ran through, raising their weapons. Johnny activated his doom blades and began deflecting bullets, and Mavis grabbed the soldiers telekinetically and threw them at the wall, hard. The soldiers went down with a scream.

More soldiers poured through, firing their guns. Mavis used her telekinesis to send shockwaves at them, knocking them back against the walls. As Mavis finished off the first wave of soldiers, Johnny already heard another group of soldiers running towards them.

"Come on, come on!" yelled Johnny, slamming the door shut again. Mavis punched a hole through the wall on the other side of the room, right into another corridor. As Mavis and Johnny clambered through, the door behind them burst open again, and more soldiers poured through, firing.

Johnny was shot in the shoulder, and cried out with pain. He temporarily fell to the ground, but dragged himself up. Mavis grabbed him telekinetically and dragged him with her to the other end of the hallway, where Mavis ran through the central corridor, right out the main entrance.

The two guards standing at the entrance didn't stand a chance. Two quick glares from Mavis were enough to make them fall asleep immediately. As Mavis and Johnny both ran into the parking lot, three squadrons of soldiers moved in from the Pentagon, their weapons raised.

Mavis looked up into the sky, _Come on_ , she thought, _Anytime around now would be great_.

At first, nothing happened, but then-

 _Zzzsssshhh_

The _Death's Bane_ materialized right in front of them, using its energy shields as a barrier to protect Johnny and Mavis. The gatling guns popped out of the front of it and began spraying down soldiers. As Johnny and Mavis got into the _Death's Bane_ , Techno activated the engines, and soon enough the two of them were once again rising above the Pentagon, far above the heads of the soldiers.

That is, until Mavis noticed the Tomahawk Missile that was flying right for them.

* * *

 **Note: W0w**


	38. Heist

Mavis only saw it, but couldn't do anything about it. The missile was already right next to the _Death's Bane_ when her eyes found it.

The Tomahawk Missile exploded, causing the _Death's Bane_ to completely tilt sideways. In the cockpit, Johnny cried out with pain as he was thrown against the wall, his bullet wound still bleeding badly.

"Shields at 0%" said the AI calmly, "Another direct hit will cause us to crash."

Mavis suddenly saw a second Tomahawk Missile, flying right at them, "AI, EVADE!" she yelled, but the AI didn't respond. Why weren't they cloaked? They were supposed to be undetectable.

That's when Mavis noticed the AI control panel. It had electricity and sparks flying from it. There was a small dent in it as well. Mavis cursed. The first Tomahawk Missile must've had an EMP on it as well, which is what caused the AI to go out of control.

The second Tomahawk Missile hit, and this time, the _Death's Bane_ received the full power of the hit. Techno whizzed around, panicking, trying to stabilize the plane, but it was still falling.

"Come on!" yelled Mavis. She grabbed Johnny by the arm and wrapped her arms around him, then threw Techno into the relic bag and grabbed that as well. She then jumped out the back door.

Mavis knew that Johnny was seriously wounded. She could feel his life force weakening by the second. But she had to continue pushing. She couldn't fail.

Because she was carrying the relic bag and a wounded Johnny, Mavis couldn't turn into a bat as she usually did. Instead, she used telekinesis to steer them. Below them, Mavis saw a dozen potential areas where she could land. She chose the area with the softest landing area. A hay bale near the port.

Behind them, Mavis heard the sound of helicopter blades, and below them, she saw a convoy of humvees following them. Mavis wasn't too worried about the helicopters or the humvees. She was powerful enough to take care of them by now.

As soon as they landed on the hay bale, Mavis telekinetically stopping their fall, Techno whizzed out, and in five seconds had completely healed the bullet wound on Johnny. Mavis looked at him, "You all right?" she asked.

Johnny nodded quickly, "Yeah, I'm fine, come on, how're we gonna get out of here?"

Mavis sighed, "Forget about that, we have to fight right now."

Johnny looked behind him. Sure enough, the convoy of humvees had just entered the port. Behind them, a dozen apaches flew in in formation. The civilians were also panicking, screaming and running around when they saw Johnny and Mavis. Some were taking videos.

 _Crap_. Thought Mavis, _this is gonna be all over the media_.

Behind her, Johnny was trying to figure out a way out of the city. True, there were plenty of boats in port, but they would all go down with one hit from a tank. Johnny cursed. He really took the _Death's Bane_ for granted now that he thought of it.

Then he saw it. A few hundred feet away, was the _USS Iowa_ museum. The _USS Iowa_ stood in port, docked, and all the civilians had probably already fled…

A crazy idea came to his mind. An idea that probably wouldn't work, but at the same time was their best chance.

'Mavis, get to that battleship." said Johnny, pointing at the _USS Iowa_.

Mavis looked back and saw where Johnny was pointing. She immediately knew what Johnny wanted to do. Mavis sighed. This was gonna suck.

 _You have thirty seconds to surrender_ , said someone on the intercom.

Mavis turned back to the convoy of military personnel and sent a telekinetic shockwave right at the convoy, sending the humvees flying back into buildings. The helicopters were hit the hardest, some of them straight up exploding, and others spiralling out of control and crashing.

Mavis turned to Johnny, "Let's go!" she yelled, and before Johnny could even respond, Mavis had grabbed him and turned to mist, flying straight for the _USS Iowa_. Soon enough they were on its deck.

The two of them ran for the bridge, Mavis smashing the window to get in. After they were both in the bridge, Mavis grabbed Techno and placed him on the control panel, "Get us out of here!" she yelled.

"This ship is old, but I can work with it," said Techno, "Engines starting...now."

The engines roared to life, and the _USS Iowa_ began moving. But then, something was holding it back…

Mavis saw the problem. There were ropes attaching the ship to port. She cursed. How could she forget about them?

Mavis telekinetically severed the ropes, and the ship began to move again. Techno steered the ship right out of port, when Mavis suddenly spotted three military destroyers moving in on the other end of port.

"Techno, are these guns ready to fire?" she asked.

"One out of the three gun turrets are operational," said Techno, "but for safety issues, I would suggest going against-"

"FIRE THOSE THINGS!" yelled Mavis and Johnny simultaneously.

"As you wish," said Techno, "Reloading process beginning."

Luckily for them, the destroyers that were going in to block them did not appear to be missile destroyers. They fired regular shells at the ship, which exploded on deck, but the _USS Iowa_ didn't stop. It was a tough ship to crack.

"Firing." said Techno. The front gun turrets fired, causing the water to splash out from the front of the ship. The shells missed, but landed near one of the destroyers.

The _USS Iowa_ was, by now, completely out of port. Behind them, the three destroyers gave chase, firing their main turrets. The shells didn't seem to do anything to the battleship, merely glancing off the sides.

Since they were now heading away from the destroyers, their front gun turrets couldn't swivel all the way around to fire at them, so Techno made the ship move 90 degrees to the right, then opened fire with the _USS Iowa's_ main turret.

This time, Techno's aim was flawless. Two out of the three 14-inch high-explosive shells collided with the lead destroyer, causing a massive explosion. The entire bridge of the lead destroyer was blown to bits. One destroyer stopped by the sinking one to help rescue them, while the last destroyer continued the chase, firing its main turret.

This time, Techno didn't hesitate. A few seconds later, he fired again, this time hitting the destroyer that was chasing them, blowing it literally in half. Mavis and Johnny watched all of this with awe. Techno seemed bored, "You know, back in the 1940s, they really sucked at aiming." he said, as he continued to steer the _USS Iowa_ towards the open atlantic ocean.

That's when Mavis both heard and saw a problem. Aircraft. Techno also sensed it. The AA guns on the battleship automatically activated, firing up at the skies. Mavis saw two F-18s fire their missiles at the ship. Without even making a hand gesture, Mavis deflected both of them without even putting in effort.

The F-18s swooped around for another missile run, but this time, Mavis didn't even give them a chance. She snapped her fingers, and both F-18s exploded in midair, their missiles having been ignited through telekinesis.

That's when Mavis noticed a few things happen. The first thing she noticed was the fleet of destroyers that just appeared in the horizon, sailing right for them. The second thing she noticed was the _Death's Bane_ , with a wing completely bent in a 90 degree angle, and a massive dent on its side, flying towards them from behind them.

Johnny also saw both of these, and gaped, "The _Death's Bane_ survived that?"

Techno replied, "Yes, the AI must've recovered after a while."

Mavis was happy to see the _Death's Bane_ still alive and functioning. But she had to focus on the problem. The fleet of 15 warships that were sailing right for them. Some of them had began firing their shells, and Mavis spotted a few missiles in the air as well. The shells didn't even have an effect on the _USS Iowa_ 's thick armor, but the missiles definitely would. Mavis deflected the missiles easily, but more missiles kept on coming. Techno fired the front cannons again, this time missing two of the shots, the last 14-inch shell completely disabling one of the destroyers.

The _Death's Bane_ landed in the back of the ship, settling itself down like a helicopter. In front of them, at least twenty more missiles were flying at them. Each one deflected by Mavis.

But then, Mavis felt something. Being a vampire, she had a good 6th sense for danger, and it was sending out loud warning signals right now. What was wrong? Mavis looked around confusedly. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing up. That's when it happened.

A hole was suddenly torn open in the hull of the ship. The entire frame of the _USS Iowa_ shook as water began leaking through.

"Hull breach detected," said Techno, "Activating watertight doors. Weapon that was used was a railgun."

"A _railgun_?" said Johnny incredulously, "Those don't exist!"

"Actually, they do." said Techno, "The US have been testing them since the beginning of the 21st century."

Sure enough, the battleship had already begun to slow down, water filling the bottom decks. Mavis suddenly felt it again, "Look out-"

 _BOOM_

A second railgun blast hit the bridge this time, blowing up the deck directly below Johnny and Mavis and setting the control area on fire. Techno remained quite calm, and Mavis was alright, but Johnny was nearest to the area of impact, and was thrown across the bridge, where he hit his head on the wall and slid down, unconscious. Mavis could still feel his life force.

Mavis turned around and immediately saw another problem. Missiles. She had been too distracted with other things. She began deflecting the missiles, this time deflecting them only when they were an inch away from the ship. Techno fired another round, this time blowing up a second ship completely with 3 well placed shots.

However, eventually, Mavis missed a missile, which hit the base of the bridge, delivering a loud explosion that disabled their gun turret and slowed them down even more. This time, however, Mavis felt Johnny's life dim. He was dying. Two more missiles hit the bridge, and this time, a metal bar fell from the ceiling and hit Johnny's former bullet wound, causing it to bleed again.

Mavis needed to do something. A game changer. She needed to protect Johnny. There was a second of silence from Mavis, until suddenly-

 _BOOOOM_

A massive roar…. a wall of water rising….a shockwave so powerful it caused Mavis's bones to shiver….and everything went dark.

* * *

Tiberius had just finished destroying his third town. Nobody knew where Mavis was. It frustrated him. At least, until he decided to toy with the entertainment device humans called a television.

It was a news channel, and a woman was speaking in fluent Chilean. Tiberius understood all of it, being omnilingual.

 _Terrorists Mavis Dracula and her husband Jonathan Loughran attacked the Pentagon in Washington DC today, and afterwards, made an escape by stealing the USS Iowa, which was a museum. No civilian casualties, but military casualties go up to potentially hundreds of lives. Our current military casualty count is 11 marines and 56 navy sailors._

Tiberius smiled. He knew where to look now. Washington DC. He spoke to his guards, "We'll be going to this place- Washington DC, tomorrow. It seems like a far away area so we'll take a plane. We need to go to the next city for that."

In the city they were currently in, the airport was destroyed by Tiberius.

"Remember," said Tiberius, "We cannot fail this. Mavis must die."

* * *

"So they get onto a battleship, get out of port, and kill dozens of our men at the same time?" asked the Supreme Leader incredulously.

George nodded, "That certainly appears to be what's happening. We lost contact with the ships for some reason, and we're sending out the 7th Naval fleet to find them right now."

The Supreme Leader nodded, "Anyways, how is the Brazilian Border?"

George shrugged, "We've placed all of our best defenses there. There's no reason to fear the aliens in Brazil. They will not reach us."

"You don't know that," snapped the Supreme Leader, "These aliens are more than capable of destroying everything we've worked for! They must be stopped."

George nodded, "As you wish, sir."

The Supreme Leader waved his hands in dismissal, "Mavis and Johnny can go on with their shenanigans. All I want right now is for the aliens to die. Dismissed."

George bowed and left the room. In his mind, however, he was thinking...the Supreme Leader was having a change in mind. Maybe he could take advantage of that.


	39. Power

Mavis was unconscious, but at the same time, she had lapses of consciousness in between intervals of time, but those intervals barely lasted for seconds. She was in the bridge of the _USS Iowa_ , then she was being carried out onto a sandy beach, then she was in a bed….

Mavis finally woke up, her eyes slowly opening. She felt terrible. Her head hurt, her stomach hurt, her legs were cramped. She felt as if every limb in her body had been stretched out by two inches. When her eyes came back into focus, she saw that she was lying in the bed at headquarters. Next to her, Johnny was also lying there, a pad on his forehead, along with other pads covering his legs and arms.

Mavis rubbed her head. What happened? What did she do? All she remembered was releasing all her energy into something. And where was Techno?

The last question was answered first, as Techno whizzed through the headquarters door. When he saw Mavis, he immediately buzzed over, "I see that you're awake. Are you feeling okay?"

Mavis shrugged, "I feel like a sack of potatoes." she said lamely, "what happened?"

Techno buzzed around Mavis, not answering at first, giving her shots, "You released a shockwave so powerful it went off the Richter scale. Apart from causing a 13.8 magnitude earthquake that destroyed Washington DC, creating a 300-foot tall rogue wave that is estimated to hit Africa, South America, and Europe, and causing a hurricane that is currently sweeping through Texas, not much."

Mavis stared. How powerful _was_ she? But that wasn't important compared to something else.

"How's Johnny?" she asked, leaning over Johnny and looking at him, concern written all over her face.

Techno buzzed over to Johnny, "He's fine, but he needs rest. You don't have to worry about him. I would suggest taking a walk right now."

Mavis nodded, and got up. She slowly walked out the door and climbed up the stairs. Each step caused her pain, but she slowly tanked her way through it. The shockwave she had created had truly drained all her strength. It took her two minutes to open the door since her hands were too tired.

When Mavis walked out the door, she was comforted by the beautiful scenery of Paradise. Nearby, underneath a small grove of trees, was the _Death's Bane_. It was still smoking, and had dents in it, but Techno had clearly been working on it. Seeing the _Death's Bane_ made her suddenly remember something. Where was the _USS Iowa_?

Her question was answered as soon as she turned around, and saw the _USS Iowa_ docked about 100 feet from the shoreline. It still had dents in it, but the hole that the railgun had created was repaired, and the bridge looked smooth. On it, Mavis saw automatons, which must've been created by Techno, working on repairing the ship.

"Ah, you've seen the _Iowa_." said Techno, whizzing out of headquarters, "The ship survived, surprisingly. I was able to get repair automatons to fix the leak in the ship, and then went back here. Your telekinetic shockwave seemed to have destroyed the United States's radar systems as well."

Mavis nodded in understanding, "Alright...what do we do with it now?"

Techno replied swiftly, "I thought that you would want to keep it, so I docked it out there and began repairs. We've already removed anything that might allow the government to track us, don't worry."

Mavis looked surprised. "Wait...we can keep it?" she asked.

"Of course we can," said Techno, "but if we do, I will be adding some technological improvements to it. This ship is very old, after all. I'm thinking about faster rotation for the turrets, a cloaking system, a smaller radar cross-section, faster reload times, and a missile system."

Mavis stared at Techno, "Do it then!"

Techno buzzed off towards the _USS Iowa_ , "As you wish, Miss Dracula.". Soon enough, Techno was on the deck of the _USS Iowa_ , working on the improvements as well as the repairs.

Mavis took a walk around the beach, still marveling and thinking about her powers. Her strength. Her true potential. It overwhelmed even her to think about it. She could destroy entire cities with her strength.

After walking in circles around the island for several minutes, Mavis decided to head to the lake and take a shower. She certainly didn't regret this. After the shower, she felt cleaner than ever. Mavis then began thinking about what to do next. They learned that the Supreme Leader was in Rio, Brazil. They knew that they could reach that area in less than a day, and that they could fight off whatever the Supreme Leader put in their way. The only problem was whether or not Johnny would wake up before the Supreme Leader moved. Mavis thought of the defenses the Supreme Leader had, and how much fighting she would have to do to get through. But then she remembered her own strength.

Her strength. That was the next thing that was bothering her. Usually, being too strong was never a problem, but it bothered Mavis. How many innocent civilians would lose their lives, how many homes and families would she destroy, from her telekinetic release?

Mavis telekinetically grabbed a rock from the beach and crushed it to dust with her telekinesis without even raising her hands. She was becoming frighteningly powerful. What if she lost control?

Mavis shook her head, _I have to focus on the larger picture right now_ , she thought. _How many lives will the Supreme Leader take if I don't stop him_?

But then another voice spoke up in her head. _Heh...why care about them? You are the strongest person in the world. Let them burn_

 _Shut up._ Mavis told herself, _I have to defeat the Supreme Leader._

 _But you're so powerful...the Supreme Leader is weak, just do what he cannot, and conquer the world._

Mavis stared at herself. With her strength, she _could_ probably conquer the world. It was a possible trail she could take…

Mavis grabbed a rock and hit her own forehead with it. How dare she. She and Johnny had risked their lives to protect the world. She couldn't afford to throw it all out now. Fear began to grip Mavis. What if she turned evil? What then? Was she truly too powerful?

Mavis growled. She couldn't afford to start doubting her own abilities at this point. She walked down the stairs and into Headquarters, where Johnny was still sound asleep. There, Mavis turned on the TV. She immediately regretted it.

 _Washington DC, after being attacked by the infamous terrorists Mavis and Johnny, has now been decimated by an earthquake measuring 13.86 on the Richter Scale. Casualties are estimated to be up to 800,000 dead, and over 2 billion dollars in property damage. Apart from that, a massive hurricane is also sweeping through Texas, and has destroyed over 1 billion dollars worth in property, and has displaced 900,000 people, who have no home anymore._

Mavis shut off the TV. She clutched her face. What has she done?

Johnny mumbled something in his sleep, getting Mavis's attention. "Mav...Mav…" he was muttering. Mavis smiled lightly. It was worth it. Johnny was alive. She looked at the blank TV screen. As long as she and Johnny were both fine, it was all worth it. No matter what the cost. No matter how many lives had to be lost. She would do it without hesitation, if it meant saving Johnny's life.

Mavis got up and sat next to Johnny, holding his hand tightly. She would not leave his side. She would rather let the world burn then do that.

* * *

"Sir, we tracked the aliens to Washington DC," said George, "They came by plane. We're deploying our men from DC now."

The Supreme Leader sighed, "They move too much...yes, deploy the garrisons at DC, and alert all military stations near the area as well. Prepare my ship too, I want to go personally."

George looked surprised, "Sir, if you go, then the aliens have a chance of killing you. It is quite risky if you're to go personally."

The Supreme Leader glared at George, "I will be fine. George, you will be in charge of the garrisons at Rio, in case the aliens are still laboring under the impression that I am here."

George sighed, "As you wish, Supreme Leader."

"Also…" the Supreme Leader looked at George, "Tell me, what do you think of the natural disasters that are forming on the East Coast?"

George looked up, "I find them unusual. Why do you ask?"

"Our scientists," the Supreme Leader pulled up an image of the _USS Iowa_. He zoomed in on the bridge. On it, George saw Mavis reaching out with her arms, her eyes glowing, "has informed me that no natural disaster this large can truly be natural. I believe that the vampire caused it all."

George was alarmed, "Sir, that's crazy. The girl could never have such power."

"But she can," growled the Supreme Leader, "You do remember the texts we received from Moscow, yes? Those texts explained the true powers of vampires. They are the most powerful species in the universe, and these storms," the Supreme Leader gestured to the pictures behind him, of the hurricane and the wreckage of DC, "is just the beginning."

George nodded slowly, "Alright...so what do we do about it?"

The Supreme Leader looked at him, "Right now, we cannot do anything. We don't know where they are or what they're planning. We can only prepare for their inevitable attack. That is why I have assigned you to defend Rio. The facility here in of utmost importance, and you out of all people know why."

George nodded. He did know why.

"Very well," the Supreme Leader waved his hands, and behind George, the doors opened, "Dismissed."

George bowed and walked out of the chamber.

* * *

Johnny gasped, waking up. Around him, he saw lights, and stone walls. He was in headquarters. Sitting next to him was none other than Mavis. Johnny smiled when he saw her, "I have to get used to waking up to such a beautiful face…" he murmured.

Mavis blushed, her cheeks turning crimson, "Stop it," she said, "you've been asleep for a while. Here, I'll help you…"

Mavis helped Johnny up, tearing the pads off his body. Techno buzzed through the doorway and saw Johnny, "Ah, Master Jonathan, so good to see you alive!" said Techno, "I was just coming back to inform Miss Dracula that the _USS Iowa_ has been completely modified."

Johnny frowned, "That thing survived?"

Mavis sighed, "Come on, I'll tell you what happened, you must have alot of questions…"

The three of them walked(or in techno's case, floated), through the doorway and went outside, Mavis explaining what happened to Johnny. Docked 100 feet away from the island was the _USS Iowa_ alright, but it looked...different.

First off, it had three additional gun turrets. Second off, each gun turret had two additional guns, and each gun was two inches larger. Techno proudly buzzed around, telling them what he had added, most of which neither Johnny nor Mavis understood. "I added 5 SAM missiles, 8 surface-to-surface missiles, and a much more advanced radar and tracking system," said Techno, "Apart from that, I also thought it would be useful to add a shield system and anti-submarine system. As a final touch I've added three railguns. Two in the front and one on the back. The rotation of the main turrets have been quickened by 15x their original speed, and for defense I've added twenty anti-missile guns."

It sure was an impressive sight, but right as Mavis was about to compliment Techno, Techno deactivated himself, falling to the ground, charging.

Mavis sighed and grabbed him, putting Techno back into the relic bag. Johnny was still staring at the _USS Iowa_ , his mouth open.

"Come on, Johnny, we can't just stare at it all day," said Mavis, "we need a plan."

Johnny nodded, "Alright...come on, lets go indoors."

The two of them retreated into headquarters, where Mavis told Johnny about her idea of going to Rio. Johnny nodded, "Yeah...going to Rio would be our most obvious choice of action, but wouldn't the Supreme Leader expect us to come?"

Mavis shrugged, "So? We can take care of them. We can kill the Supreme Leader, once and for all. Then after that we can finish off the aliens."

Johnny shifted, "Mmm...okay then...say we do kill the Supreme Leader, then how're we gonna find the aliens?"

Mavis pointed at the TV, "The aliens have been trampling all over South America, they'll attack an area, and we'll just go right to them and finish them off."

Johnny nodded, "Alright...when do you wanna leave?"

"Let's see…" Mavis flipped through the calendar that was hanging on the Headquarter walls, "Let's leave...tomorrow."

Johnny nodded, "Alright, as long as I don't have to get knocked out again, I'm cool."

Mavis laughed and kissed Johnny, "I love you," she said grinning, "you know, we make a great team."

Johnny smiled, "Yeah," he said, "We really do make a good team."


	40. Mercy

The next morning, both Mavis and Johnny woke up at the same time. One glance from each other, and they were both throwing on their clothes, grabbing their weapons and relics, and going into the _Death's Bane_. Techno decided to stay behind at Paradise and supervise the island.

It was 6:49 am when they left the island, flying over the Atlantic Ocean. Johnny and Mavis were both ready to fight. Johnny had been healed by Techno well enough that he could run and fight. Yesterday, before Johnny and Mavis went to bed, the two of them had practiced their Kugun/Karate combination fighting technique to get Johnny back in shape.

As Mavis stared at the cockpit window, she was thinking about what happened yesterday. About her powers, and what they meant. Every few minutes, Mavis's mind would randomly drift across the idea of conquering the world, and every time Mavis would erase it, but it eventually began getting to her.

Johnny noticed it immediately. He was good at analyzing his wife. "Mavey, you okay?" he asked, watching her.

Mavis nodded quickly, "I'm fine," she said, "I'm okay."

This response clearly didn't satisfy Johnny. "You're not okay, and I can tell. What's wrong? You've been tense this whole time."

Mavis sighed, "It's about the power I unleashed before I passed out on the _USS Iowa_ …"

Johnny looked confused, "Why is that a problem?" he asked, "you're strong! You should be proud of that! Your dad would've been happy to see you so powerful."

Mavis shook her head, "It's not my strength! It's...it's what I would use that strength for."

Johnny raised his eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

"Listen...I've been having thoughts...bad thoughts," said Mavis, "I'm trying really hard to ignore them, but it's so _tempting_."

"What thoughts?" asked Johnny, "Come on, you can tell me."

"Thought about...conquering the world. I'm strong enough to do it," said Mavis, "I can certainly do it if I tried, but it's evil. I'm not sure if I can handle this type of power without…"

Mavis stopped talking, staring at the ground. Johnny patted her back awkwardly, "Listen, Mavey, you're the kindest, sweetest, toughest girl I know. You would never do something like that. I know that for a fact."

Mavis wasn't comforted by this, "I don't know…" she murmured, "maybe humans had a good reason to fear vampires…"

Johnny grabbed Mavis's arm, "If a normal vampire would want to take over the world and kill everyone, then you aren't a normal vampire. Relax, Mavey, it's probably just an overreaction."

Mavis sighed, "You're right, I should...go do something.". Mavis telekinetically grabbed the duplication stone and went to the back, duplicating ammunition and missiles.

Johnny turned back to the controls, but in reality, he was thinking. Mavis was having thoughts about world conquest? That _was_ bad. What if she lost control? Johnny shook his head. He couldn't afford to question the trust of Mavis. She was his wife.

About an hour later, the AI chimed in, "We are now 15 minutes away from Rio, Brazil, prepare for landing."

Mavis came back to the cockpit, "AI, scan the area for any signs of people who work for the Supreme Leader." she said, "And keep us cloaked." she added.

"Okay, beginning biological scan of the area for any person(s) who I have cataloged as working for the Supreme Leader…"

There was a second of silence, then, "Scan complete, detected people working for the Supreme Leader in indicated locations."

On the main screen, an aerial image of Rio popped up, then hundreds of red dots began popping up all over the image, showing where the targets were. There was a large mass of them gathered on the south side of the city.

Johnny printed out two copies of the image, and then turned to Mavis, "Let's get going," he said, "hopefully people around here aren't as familiar with us as the people in the US."

The two of them jumped out of the back of the _Death's Bane_ , free falling over the city of Rio. Mavis, while falling, was reading the map. Using extra-sensory perception, she located the most likely spot of entry in the city: the Parque Lage, a park in Rio, which was surrounded on one side by forestry and on the other by the bustling city.

Mavis rocketed down to where Johnny was, yelling over the wind, "We have to get to the Parque Lage!"

Johnny gave a thumbs up in understanding, and located it on his map. He leaned hard to the right, slowly forcing himself into the right direction. Soon enough the two of them were a mere two hundred feet above the Parque Lage. Mavis grabbed Johnny's shirt and turned into a bat, softening his landing. As the two of them landed in the park, scaring the crap out of literally every pedestrian there, Johnny turned to Mavis, "Where's the entrance?"

Mavis concentrated, using her extra-sensory perception to feel her way into the entrance. She finally found it. The basement doors, which was across the street. Mavis and Johnny ran across the cobbled pathway, through the grass, and across the street, causing a few cars to honk at them. Mavis then grabbed the basement doors and ripped them open.

Behind it was a down-sloping tunnel. Mavis slowed down, walking a little more cautiously. Behind her, Johnny activated both doom blades and closed the door. They were now completely bathed in darkness.

As Johnny's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he silently made his way down the hallway, staying behind Mavis, who could see in the dark very well. They had entered into a large stone room. It kind of looked like an underground garage, without the cars or the bumpers. Mavis silently walked around the room, taking out her map, "That's weird…" she murmured, "The people are supposed to be here."

"They must be beneath us." whispered Johnny. Mavis nodded, and looked around, concentrating and using her extrasensory perception. She located a maintenance door and an unmarked door, both of which were on the other end of the room.

"Follow me," whispered Mavis, "I see some doors there…"

The two of them made their way across the room, with Mavis in the lead. When they reached the other end of the room, Mavis went to the maintenance door first, and opened it. It was unlocked. Behind it, there were mops, brooms, and soap bottles, all of them old and dusty.

Mavis went to the other door, silently grabbing the handle and pulling. It was locked. Mavis signaled to Johnny, who nodded and got behind her. Mavis grabbed the door handle, then pulled it right off its hinges, giving off a loud crunching noise. Johnny jumped in, his doom blades ready, when he saw-

"FIRE!"

Things happened so quickly, it was hard to comprehend, even for Mavis. Blue bullets flew in all directions, and Johnny was immediately forced into a cramped defense, deflecting dozens of bullets at the same time. Mavis saw one bullet hit Johnny's stomach, but bounce off for some reason. She was puzzled. Why did the soldiers use non lethal bullets?

"Wait!" Mavis heard a soldier yell, "It's not the alien, it's the vampire! Switch ammo!"

Immediately, Mavis understood. The soldiers must've armed themselves for aliens, in which they created bullets specifically designed to kill them. But the bullets were ineffective against humans and vampires…

Mavis immediately took advantage of the situation, sending out a powerful shockwave that either killed or injured all of the soldiers in the room. She ran across the massive room, looking at her map. Where could the Supreme Leader be?

She immediately spotted another tunnel leading down farther underground. There were no other tunnels in the room. Mavis didn't hesitate, "Johnny, come on!" she yelled, and ran down the tunnel, Johnny behind her.

The two of them burst into a chamber. It was dark, and in the center, there was a desk. Behind the desk was none other than George, looking quite calm as Johnny and Mavis approached.

"Very impressive, the two of you found us." said George, "you must be here for the Supreme Leader."

Johnny leveled his doom blade, "Enough games," he said, "where is he?"

George stood up, "He's not here. He left me here to defend in case the aliens came. Unfortunately," his eyes flashed venomously at Mavis, "he appeared to be wrong on _who_ would arrive."

Mavis raised her doom blade as well, "Where is the Supreme Leader going?" she asked, not really thinking that George would reply. However, George did give an answer, surprisingly.

"The Supreme Leader is in Washington DC right now, hunting the aliens." he said, "Unlike you, we prioritize who to kill for the betterment of humanity."

Johnny walked closer, "The betterment of humanity? Are you actually fucking kidding me? You call murdering millions of innocent lives 'the betterment of humanity'?"

George sighed, "They were necessary deaths, miniscule to the utopian society that we will form after we crush you and your vampire."

Mavis lunged, activating her doom blade, but George saw right through it, activating his own energy sword and parrying Mavis's attack. His technique was surprisingly good for his age. Mavis backed up, using her telekinesis to throw George, but George had something that prevented Mavis's telekinesis to work on him. Mavis and Johnny both went on the offensive, pressing their attack on George.

George kicked Johnny in the stomach, causing him to stumble back and fall, wounded. Mavis continued the attack, pressing George against the wall. Behind her, Mavis heard mechs stomping in their direction.

Johnny got back up and tried to stab George while he was pressed on the wall, but George ducked, dodging the attack, and stabbed at Mavis, who was forced to take a step back.

George smiled, "My reinforcements are finally here."

Behind him, three massive mechs stomped into view. They each had nasty looking laser guns on each arm, along with rockets, machine guns, and flamethrowers.

Before the mechs could even fire, Mavis had ran on top of them and had crushed one using telekinesis. The other two opened fire, causing Mavis to back up a little. Johnny engaged George in a sword fight, both trying to kill the other.

Mavis threw the other two mechs out the door, then locked the massive doors using telekinesis, right as George kicked Johnny, sending him falling back again. George walked up to him, raising his sword for the kill, then stabbed downwards, but Mavis managed to run to Johnny's side and parry the attack.

George and Mavis began fighting yet again, their blades becoming flashes of light, too fast to comprehend. Mavis slashed George's leg causing him to stumble a little, then landed a punch on his face, sending him flying back and into the wall, his sword flying out of his hand. Johnny also got up then, but before he could do anything, the two mechs Mavis had thrown out burst through the door, firing their guns. Johnny's doom blade automatically began blocking bullets, covering for Mavis.

George was gasping for breath, but even he knew it was over. "Kill me then," he growled, "Kill me, if that's what you think will win you this war."

Mavis stared at him, her expression completely blank. She should kill George. He deserved it. He took part in the destruction and deaths of hundreds of lives. He took part in allowing the aliens to enter into Earth. But then, Mavis also thought about other things George did. How he fought by her side on the _USS Independence_ , how he was the reason they ever had Gerschiv. How without George, Mavis wouldn't be as strong as she was now.

Mavis raised her sword, and angled it slightly downwards. She stabbed George right through the kidney, stabbing him all the way through to the hilt.

George collapsed on the ground, bleeding profusely.

Mavis, without looking, snapped her fingers. The two mechs that were firing at Johnny were crushed into tin cans.

George was still alive, Mavis knew that. She could feel his life force. Weak, but definitely still there. She acted as if she killed George.

"Come on," yelled Mavis, running to Johnny, "Are you hurt?"

Johnny shook his head, although he did look exhausted, "I'm good, let's get outta here."

Mavis nodded. She grabbed Johnny, then turned into mist, carrying him at supersonic speeds until they were out of the basement, passing by at least a dozen squadrons of soldiers.

As soon as they came out of the basement, the _Death's Bane_ materialized over them, opening its back doors. Johnny and Mavis clambered onto it. Behind them, bullets starting pinging off the shields of the plane, with no effect. Techno's repairs seemed to be effective.

As the _Death's Bane_ began rising over the city of Rio, Mavis could only think of whether or not George survived her stab through the kidney, and whether or not it was the right thing to do.


	41. Family

Tiberius had just finished cleaning out all of Washington DC. Without finding Mavis. He growled with frustration. How large was this world? Perhaps Mavis was hiding in a place that wasn't discovered since he was last on Earth.

Whatever, it didn't matter. Right now, Tiberius had to worry about the six airships that had just appeared above him. He recognized them. They were the same ones that vaporized one of his guards.

As the airships trained their guns on Tiberius, he signalled to his guards, who all nodded, and formed a circle around him. Tiberius concentrated, bringing all of his telekinesis into one spot-the area directly beneath him, then released all the energy in one, furious explosion, launching himself up at one of the airships, telekinetically lifting his guards with him.

Tiberius blasted through the hull of the ship, and immediately alarms began blaring. Dozens of soldiers ran down to where Tiberius was and began firing at him, but Tiberius simply killed them all with a wave of his hand. Tiberius made his way down to the bridge, killing dozens more who tried to stop him. On the bridge, the captain of the airship was frantically yelling into the communications channel.

"Yes, yes, I know that that's where I am, but if you don't fire, you're all dead!" he yelled. Then he spotted Tiberius. "Fire them, he's in my bridge.". The captain set down the phone and activated an energy blade. Around him, his soldiers took up formation.

"Fire!" yelled the captain, and immediately, the soldiers began firing grenades, rockets, and their guns at the aliens. Tiberius's armor protected him completely, and the guards had little trouble slicing effortlessly through the soldiers. The captain stood up straight, pointing his energy sword right at Tiberius.

Tiberius smiled under his mask, "You are brave, to face me one on one. I'll grant you your request of death."

Tiberius activated his energy sword, and charged. The captain was better trained than the other soldiers, but was still no match. Twenty seconds into the fight, Tiberius stabbed the captain in the waist, causing him to cry out with pain and drop to his knees. Tiberius slashed him across the neck, killing him.

Two ships away from him, on the main flagship, the Supreme Leader gave the order to open fire. The airships all fired their gun turrets, right at the ship which Tiberius was on. The entire airship was turned into a massive fireball, hurtling towards the earth, and crashed into the wreckage of Washington DC.

The Supreme Leader looked down at the remains of the airship he just ordered to be shot down. He didn't want to believe it, but he knew that Tiberius was still alive.

The Supreme Leader ordered squadrons of his elites to be dropped off near the site of the wreckage. 120 black robed guards were sent to search for the aliens. He also ordered all airships to reload their guns and train them on the wreckage. He wasn't about to let them escape too easily.

Below forty feet of wreckage, Tiberius was indeed very alive. He telekinetically blew away all the wreckage that was surrounding his body. His armor was charred and slightly grimy, but otherwise fine. Around him, the other eleven guards stood back up. Tiberius laughed, They really thought they could harm us, he thought, when we're the most powerful beings to ever exist?

That was when Tiberius saw the robed guards. About a hundred of them, surrounding them in a circle. They wielded energy weapons and energy swords. Tiberius growled. These humans were proving to be very annoying.

Tiberius struck the ground, sending a shockwave out that knocked back several robed guards. The rest charged. Tiberius and the guards met the elites head-on, fighting with immense ferocity. These guards were very well trained, and had better reflexes than what Tiberius had predicted, but were nonetheless still weak compared to him.

As the Supreme Leader watched the battle from up in the sky, he cursed. He had seriously underestimated the power of the aliens. One of his men suddenly yelled out to him, "Sir, an aerial vehicle just appeared out of the edge of our radar!"

The Supreme Leader looked over at the radar, and sure enough, there was a small jet-like thing flying towards them.

The Supreme Leader looked out the bridge display glass, and sure enough, saw a small plane fly straight for them. He turned to his men, "Secure the ship! That's the vampire's plane!"

Immediately, alarms started blaring all across the ship. Soldiers grabbed their guns, and the guard mechs that were stationed in the ship were also activated. The ship's cannons aimed at the ship and began firing, but the shots were deflected by some sort of energy shield.

The Supreme Leader gritted his teeth. It was definitely the vampire that was in the plane.

As the Death's Bane flew towards the flagship at Mach 6, completely abandoning the cloak for speed, Mavis immediately began to feel the death that emanated from the city. Hundreds of lives, either injured or dead, from the earthquake she had caused.

Below her, Mavis saw Tiberius fighting the elite guard that the Supreme Leader had sent. As she watched him, she had that weird feeling yet again, as if she's seen Tiberius somewhere before.

The AI spoke up, "Ten seconds away from the ship, activating entry drill."

Johnny looked up, surprised, "You have an entry drill?" he said, incredulous, "why didn't you tell us before?"

"This ship is armed with 14,563 other mechanisms you have no knowledge about," said the AI, "five seconds away from the ship."

Johnny glanced at Mavis, who shrugged. Maybe this would actually work. The Death's Bane latched onto the side of the airship. There was a second of silence, then a bright flash of red light as a laser shot out from the bottom of the plane, cutting a hole right through the armor of the airship. Molten metal and smoke went everywhere, but when the doors of the Death's Bane opened, Johnny and Mavis were in the ship.

The Death's Bane activated cloak right behind them, effectively hiding itself from any sensors that the Supreme Leader might've had, and Johnny and Mavis began making their way down the corridor, both of them activating their weapons.

The walls were made of some sort of grayish-blue metal that Johnny had never seen before. He didn't see any soldiers or mechs anywhere. All around the area, however, he saw signs of life: A half-empty coffee mug, some papers sitting on the ground, and the occasional pizza slice that they passed.

The sirens on the ship were silent, but Johnny and Mavis quickly noticed the red emergency lights that were flashing on the walls. Sure enough, as they opened their first door, they were greeted by a group of soldiers huddled together in a barrack. As soon as the soldiers saw them, they yelled, grabbing their weapons and pointing their guns at them. Johnny deflected the bullets easily, and Mavis telekinetically grabbed the soldiers and slammed them against the walls, knocking each of them out.

"Come on!" yelled Mavis to Johnny, "Let's keep going, we can't waste time with regular soldiers."

Johnny nodded and quickly followed Mavis as she ran down the hallway. They passed by dozens of barrack doors, each of them probably holding a squad of soldiers behind them, but Mavis didn't care about them. She came here for one job. She came here to kill the Supreme Leader. Mavis's eyes glowed red for a second, as she used her extrasensory perception to locate the bridge, which was on the other end of the ship.

Mavis growled, "Johnny, get over here," she said. Johnny ran over to her, looking around expectantly, "What?"

Mavis, not waiting to explain, grabbed Johnny and turned into mist, flying down the hallways at maximum speed, whizzing past dozens of doors, corridors, and stairways. When Johnny's eyes adjusted, he was standing outside the door of the bridge.

Mavis tried opening the door. It was locked, of course. She growled, her fists clenched. She punched the door once, making it bend slightly. This door was much more secure than other doors that she was used to. Mavis punched it a second time, this time causing a weird wrenching sound to tear through the corridor that she was in. On the third punch, the entire door fell apart, screws and nails flying everywhere.

Mavis ran through, Johnny right behind her, activating his doom blades. The bridge itself was a mess, dozens of soldiers and officers scrambling around, yelling orders. As soon as the people in the bridge noticed the two of them, they began pulling out weapons, firing. Mavis turned to mist, evading the bullets immediately, and saw the Supreme Leader, running into a room to the side of the bridge. Behind him, a dozen elite guards closed the doors and drew their weapons.

While Johnny finished off the officers and soldiers in the bridge, Mavis sped off after the Supreme Leader, but was stopped by two of the mechs, who activated massive energy blades and charged her. Mavis jumped to one side, avoiding both, and shoved one mech into the other, crushing both pilots easily. She continued running, smashing open the door and running into the room on the other end.

The room was large, relatively warm, and was very, very big. It was about the size of three basketball courts. The entire room was lit by surprisingly old-looking fires and had was made out of the same blueish-gray material Mavis had seen before. The Supreme Leader stood at the other end of the room.

Mavis approached him slowly, raising her blade in case he attacked.

The Supreme Leader clapped his hands slowly, "Very impressive, Mavis Dracula," he said, "your father would've been very...proud."

Mavis didn't respond. Instead, she continued to approach, leveling his blade.

"Mavis…" the Supreme Leader sighed, "you must understand. The aliens are the bigger threat. We cannot quarrel over small matters anymore."

"Small matters?" Mavis growled, "you mean quarreling over the death of pretty much everyone I love? Is that a small matter?"

"It is not as important as the threat these aliens pose to the existence of humanity!" yelled the Supreme Leader, "Can you not see? I'm trying to help the world right now."

"You disgust me." spat Mavis. Behind her, Johnny ran into the room, blood covering his shirt and body, but otherwise looking fine. He looked as though he had just finished killing off everyone in the bridge, which was probably true.

He ran by Mavis's side, leveling his sword as well. He hated the Supreme Leader just as much as Mavis did.

The Supreme Leader scowled, "Fine...let it be this way then."

With surprising agility, the Supreme Leader flew at them, activating an energy whip. Johnny backed up, avoiding the whip, but Mavis was faster, dodging the first two strikes, and slashing at the Supreme Leader. The Supreme Leader blocked this attack, slashing his whip back at Mavis, forcing her to back up.

The Supreme Leader smiled under his cloak, "It's been too long since I've last battled…this will be fun."

2000 feet below them, Tiberius noticed a few things. The first thing he noticed was that a smoking hole in the side of the main flagship of the airship fleet. A smoking hole which he did not create. The second thing he noticed was that his vampire DNA detector was beeping. And the last time it beeped was back in Antofagasta. When he had seen Mavis.

Tiberius yelled, sending out a shockwave that knocked all the elite guards back. He signalled to his guards, who nodded and formed yet another circle around Tiberius. Tiberius formed a concentration of energy right below him, and launched himself up at the airship. Behind him, his guards were also flying thanks to his telekinesis.

As Tiberius landed on the side of the ship, he quickly located where the hole was, and jumped in. Mavis was in here. He had to find her.

As Mavis and Johnny fought the Supreme Leader, they realized more and more how skilled he was at combat. The Supreme Leader was the only person who could keep up with Mavis's attacks apart from Tiberius. As Tiberius forced Mavis to retreat yet a fourth time, Mavis yelled, and tried using telekinesis on him again, to no avail. The Supreme Leader was wearing that annoying thing that didn't allow her to use telekinesis on him.

Johnny ran in, swinging his blade down hard on the Supreme Leader's head, but the Supreme Leader blocked it easily yet again, slashing his whip and cutting Johnny on the hip. Johnny fell back, gritting his teeth but still standing. Mavis noticed that he was bleeding pretty badly from his wound, and grabbed his arm.

"Let me handle it," she said, "you're wounded."

Johnny looked as if he was about to argue, but sighed, "Get 'em Mavey." he said, kissing her quickly.

Mavis turned towards the Supreme Leader, and began circling him. The Supreme leader wouldn't attack. His fighting style was heavily defensive, and relied on counterattacks to inflict damage. So the only way to draw him out was to wait.

As the Supreme Leader circled Mavis, she kept her defensive stance, readying herself for when the Supreme Leader would strike. As the seconds ticked by, however, there was a roar somewhere down the ship. Mavis saw the Supreme Leader's face crease with surprise. Something apart from herself and Johnny was on the ship uninvited.

There was only one person who that could be. Tiberius.

There was a second roar, and yelling sounded from down the hallway. The humans who weren't killed were still putting up a fight, but as the yelling grew closer and closer, Mavis knew they were losing ground.

The Supreme Leader took this chance to attack, swinging his whip out and forcing Mavis to back up a few more steps. Mavis lunged back, attacking the Supreme Leader's face, and cutting him lightly on the face with the edge of the blade.

The doors to the room burst open once again, and a mech, or what remained of a mech, flew through, exploding. Tiberius and his eleven guards walked through the doors.

Johnny scrambled up, reactivating his doom blade with the entry of the newcomers. The Supreme Leader had stopped his attacks on Mavis, and was watching the aliens with...was that concern?

Tiberius walked forward, his armor charred but still very intact. "Your men put up a weak fight," he said to the Supreme Leader, "perhaps humans have improved since I last saw them, but no matter. You are all still weak."

He stabbed the ground with his sword, sending out an electrical shockwave that knocked Johnny, Mavis, and the Supreme Leader back.

The Supreme Leader straightened up, "Don't do this," he said tiredly, "you were born here. This is your home world."

Tiberius laughed bitterly, "You know nothing of my past. You are nothing."

"No," said the Supreme Leader, "I was everything to you, at least until I realized my mistake. You have no memory of how you travelled to the other world, do you?"

Tiberius was caught off guard by this comment. He didn't know how he got to the other world. All he remembered was waking up one day in it.

"Let me answer some questions that you clearly have," said the Supreme Leader, "When you were very young, I taught you that Mavis was being hidden from you by Dracula, and that he was plotting against you."

Tiberius scowled, "You lie. You know nothing."

Mavis and Johnny were more than capable of attacking at this point, but didn't, mainly out of curiosity.

"I am correct, and you know it. I felt remorse for what I did. So I tried to repay for it by getting rid of you. I threw you into the portal in hopes that you would never return. I couldn't kill you. That wasn't right. After that, I promised to live a life of solitude until I died." said the Supreme Leader.

"Perhaps I was wrong, in doing so, but it was the only way. After years and years of solitude, I began to dream of power. Immense power. That is why I infiltrated the United States army, and became the Supreme Leader. I was corrupt. But now, after seeing you return, my original goal has come back to mind. Don't do this, and go back to where you came from." he continued.

Tiberius activated his sword and pointed it at him, "How do you know this?" he growled.

The Supreme Leader sighed, "Ben...do you know what happened to your grandfather?"

Tiberius hesitated, "He...he died of tuberculosis at the age of 92."

"No," said the Supreme Leader, "that was a lie planted by me years ago...Ben, I am your grandfather.


	42. A New Enemy

There were over a dozen things that ran through Mavis's mind. She could've thought of any number of things to say to such an incredulous statement, from "You're lying!" to "Yeah, and I'm your mom."

Johnny was also standing there, his mouth gaping open. He did not see that coming. He knew that there was some sort of relationship between the Supreme Leader and Tiberius, but he did not expect it to be so close as to being family.

Tiberius, however, was the most shocked.

"You're lying." he said, taking a step forward, his sword still raised. Mavis noticed that he was shaking slightly, "You couldn't have. I _watched_ him die with my own eyes!"

The Supreme Leader waved his hands, "Death can easily be faked. Do you ever wonder why I never had a grave? It was because I was never buried. I was hoping that by trapping you in another dimension, you would not be a harm to this world, and would still be able to live your life properly. I guess I was wrong."

Tiberius stood there, breathing heavily. He didn't know what to feel. Anger? Shock? Sadness? He didn't know. But he didn't care. With a loud sizzling noise, Tiberius yelled, throwing himself at the Supreme Leader.

"You will _DIE_!" he screamed, as he slashed and hacked at his own grandfather, "You made my life a _LIE_!" The Supreme Leader blocked his attacks easily, and Mavis suddenly saw an opportunity. When Tiberius's back was turned, she jumped in for the attack, raising his blade and bringing it down hard on Tiberius's spine.

Tiberius sensed her right before she struck, and with the agility of what could only be recognized as a master swordsman's move, he rolled out of the way, and Mavis was instead flying at the Supreme Leader.

Something went through Mavis. Something that told her, _he's not the bad guy_. Mavis stopped herself right in time, and turned back to Tiberius, who was watching her apprehensively.

"So it's true?" he asked across the room, "It's true, that you are Mavis Dracula?"

Mavis reactivated her blade and pointed it at him, "You won't kill me. You don't know what you're doing."

Tiberius hissed, "Lies."

He ran straight at Mavis with astonishing speeds, even for Mavis, and the two of them clashed across the room. Tiberius had decades of battle experience and training, while Mavis had nothing but her own reflexes and her vampire strength.

Johnny was watching the battle, waiting for the right moment to strike. He hated being left out of important battles like this.

The Supreme Leader was also watching. One thing went through his mind. He had to finish what he started, right here and now.

As Mavis charged Tiberius yet again, Tiberius yelled, sending a telekinetic shockwave through the room and throwing her back a few meters. Mavis got right back up, spitting blood out of her mouth, still glaring at Tiberius. Tiberius ran up to Mavis, quicker than she could even comprehend, and soon had her pinned to the ground under his boot. Her doom blade was on the ground, several meters away from her. She tried to telekinetically grab the blade, but her strength had abandoned her.

Tiberius raised his blade, and stabbed down-

"Oh, hell no."

Tiberius's blade was parried by Johnny, who ran in just at the right moment. Tiberius was caught completely off guard, and had to endure three slashes that went across his chest, causing cracks to appear in his armor, before regaining his defensive stance.

Tiberius scowled, "You humans these days sure are more annoying than back when I was here. But it makes no difference. You are all _weak_."

He knocked Johnny's blade out of his hand, and kicked him, hard. Johnny flew across the room and slammed into a wall on the other side.

By now, Mavis had regained her strength, and had grabbed her doom blade from the ground. When she saw Johnny, something flashed across her mind. Something that resembled worry.

Mavis lowered her weapon for a moment, concentrating. She could feel Johnny, still alive. He was fine. Mavis was interrupted by Tiberius.

"You are unwise to lower your defenses." hissed Tiberius, as he dashed right in front of Mavis and slammed her in the face. Mavis flew back into the wall, cracking the metal with the force of her impact. She heard Tiberius laughing.

"So much spirit, so little of a challenge," Tiberius laughed at her, "I barely even remember why I want to kill you. You're just a stupid girl."

Tiberius lunged at Mavis, but was stopped as a whip came out of nowhere and hit him directly across the face, leaving a scar over his armor. The Supreme Leader leveled his energy whip yet again, watching Tiberius.

"Mavis, take Johnny and go." said the Supreme Leader, "Today, we fight as allies. Tomorrow, we fight as enemies. Run. Now."

Mavis didn't hesitate. While Tiberius was getting up, sparks coming out of his armor, she ran over to Johnny and grabbed him by the arms, lifting him over her shoulders. Johnny was barely conscious, saying something around the lines of, "Wha…?

"Come on, Johnny, we're getting out of here!" yelled Mavis, turning around and zipping out the doors. The alien guards, who were standing over the doors, tried to stop them, but Mavis simply ran over the side of the wall, whizzing past them. Behind her, Mavis could hear the sounds of the Supreme Leader and Tiberius fighting.

Mavis went back to the hole in which the _Death's Bane_ had created on the side of the flagship. Without hesitating, she hurled herself out of the hole, freefalling over the city, and turning into a bat at the last second, safely landing on the ground. Above them, the _Death's Bane_ materialized, opening its back doors, and Mavis dragged Johnny onto it, settling him down on one of the seats.

As Mavis and Johnny flew high above the city, Mavis suddenly felt something. An emptiness, as if something had just been snuffed out of her life. Mavis immediately recognized it as the feeling of somebody dying. She sighed. The Supreme Leader was dead.

* * *

George did not remember anything after getting stabbed by Mavis. He remembered losing alot of blood, his body turning practically chalk white, then blacking out.

But now, as his eyes focused on what was in front of him, he saw doctors scrambling around him. He was on an operation bed, with tubes and plastic containers filled with fluids running into his body. He groaned. His stomach felt numb for some reason…

"Oh, you're awake," said one of the doctors, "we've been worried if you would ever wake up again, you suffered a nasty stab through the kidney."

George nodded, understanding the speech of the scientists, which sounded garbled to him now, "Alright...what's happened since I've been out?"

The doctor shifted uncomfortably, "Well...the Supreme Leader is dead."

George spat so hard a tube popped out of his chest, " _What_?"

"It's true," said another scientist, "We found his body on the Main Flagship. We believe that he's been killed by the aliens, but we aren't certain. The vampire and her human have also been on that same ship, but we don't think they killed the Supreme Leader, from the autopsy."

George sat back down on the operation bed, allowing one of the doctors to replace the tube that had popped out of him, "Okay…" he murmured. He tried to keep a straight face. This was _great_ news actually. With the Supreme Leader dead, he was the only one in line to take his position. Sure enough, one of the doctors immediately confirmed his thoughts.

"So...with the Supreme Leader dead, you're the leader of us now."

George nodded, feigning sorrow. "Get me patched up as soon as possible," he said, "I'll be heading off to Bhutan in a few days. Where is the Supreme Leader's body?"

"His body is in the Aux Isles. He arrived a few days ago. We decided to put his body so far away from here for security reasons."

George nodded, "Alright…"

His mind was racing now with new possibilities. This was just about the best thing that's ever happened to him. He was now the most powerful person in the world. He had always hated the Supreme Leader's passiveness, how he never wanted to take action. Under him, he could finally bring about the change he's dreamed about for so long…

"When will I be able to move around?" he asked the doctors who were scrambling around him.

"Um…" one doctor read something on a display that was out of view of George, "you should be able to move around in about a day...but we highly discourage it, the synthetic kidney we've installed in you needs time to adjust."

George waved his hands, "It doesn't matter, I need to get stuff done. Prepare my jet-" George hesitated, remembering how it was usually the Supreme Leader who said this, "and have it fueled and ready."

The scientist nodded, "Alright."

* * *

Mavis only realized how exhausted she was after she landed at Paradise. She helped Johnny out of the _Death's Bane_ , settling him down on the Headquarters bed. Techno whizzed out of headquarters and fussed around, giving Mavis medication and trying his best to keep Johnny's heartbeat steady.

It was only after Johnny was tucked safely in bed when Techno informed Mavis that, in preparation for their arrival, he had made chicken noodle soup for both of them, quadruple servings for her since she was a vampire. Mavis immediately wolfed down the soup, then fell asleep next to Johnny.

When Mavis woke up yet again, it was to the delicious aroma of lamb stew. She recognized it at once, Johnny convincing her to try the stuff before. Next to her, Johnny was still snoring peacefully on the bed, his skin a little less white than the day before.

Techno was floating around in the kitchen, making them the stew. He saw Mavis getting up, and whizzed over, "So glad you're awake, Miss Dracula. I'm preparing you breakfast. Your vital signs and organs all seem to be in full functioning order, but your brain seems to be recovering from what appears to be battle trauma."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "Whatever...I didn't know we had such a large kitchen in here."

Techno floated a little higher as he heard her say this, "Ah, yes. While you were gone, I decided to improve headquarters. The _USS Iowa_ has also undergone some modifications."

Mavis saw the lamb that Techno was cooking in the oven, "Where did you get that stuff?" she asked, brushing some hair out of her eyes.

Techno whizzed back to the kitchen, "I duplicated some scraps of lamb meat I found in canned soup. It tastes surprisingly good if you mass duplicate it. Anyways, you want some?"

Mavis nodded, still hungry even though she had eaten so much last night. "I'll take some...have you checked on Johnny yet?"

Techno nodded, "Yes I have...he's doing well, although he may be out for some time. He received a major concussion from whatever you were dealing with."

Mavis nodded, still watching Johnny worriedly, "Keep an eye on him, okay? Make sure he lives."

"Of course I will, under my care, Johnny will have a 0.000892% chance of dying." said Techno, chopping some carrots with a butcher knife he had somehow created while Mavis was gone.

Mavis smiled lightly. Techno was always fun to talk to, even if he was just a droid. A nice droid, at least. "Thanks, Techno." she said, as she walked out of Headquarters. Outside, the sun was shining, casting rays of light all over the island. Docked outside the island was the _USS Iowa_ , patrolling the waters around the island. It was quite a peaceful sight.

That's when the true realization of what happened hit Mavis like a truck. What had happened back there, on the island. Tiberius was Ben...and the Supreme Leader was his grandfather. That didn't make any sense whatsoever to Mavis, but it was true. It had to be. The Supreme Leader was also dead...what did that mean? Would someone else take over? A subordinate?

Mavis's mind flashed to George. She had stabbed him right across the kidney, purposely sparing his life. There was a big chance that George died there, but at the same time, there was also a chance that he survived…

If George survived, he would inherit the title of Supreme Leader. He was the next in line, at least. Nobody else was more qualified.

And then there was Tiberius. He was the one who's been hunting Mavis. He was Mavis's enemy this whole time. And Mavis knew that he would not stop hunting her even with the Supreme Leader dead. He was probably looking for her right now, hunting for her.

Mavis shook her head. It wasn't going to do her any good to be paranoid. She silently walked back into the shade of the island, looking forward to taking a bath in the lake…

* * *

Tiberius was breathing heavily. At the current moment he was flying in a hijacked stealth jet, flying over the "Atlantic Ocean", whatever that was. For the first time in centuries, he was tired. After killing the Supreme Leader, and finding out that Mavis and Johnny had escaped, he had thrown himself into a rage, killing his guards in it.

He had spent such a long time searching. Searching for answers. Searching for Mavis. He had her in his grasp, but she managed to get away. Again.

Tiberius's knuckles went white with anger as he thought of it. Mavis. Mavis Dracula. Luckily for him, however, he knew a place where he could find Mavis. If superior technology and decades of military experience couldn't find her, then maybe some magic would…


	43. Life

The facility at St. Kilda was surprised when George arrived in the hangar. Most of the engineers were still walking around, talking about their projects, or making calculations. Everything in the hangar seemed to stop as a large stealth jet, escorted by five fighter jets, flew into it. George came out, now wearing a white uniform with a black cape. Immediately the room grew silent, then-

"Welcome back, Supreme Leader!" yelled one soldier, saluting immediately. The rest of the room quickly followed suit. George nodded in approval, "Dismissed.", and the entire hangar went back to their normal activities, their voices now slightly hushed.

"George is the Supreme Leader now?"

"Nobody ever told me that...what d'ya think is gonna happen?"

"Hopefully nothing bad to our projects…"

George walked past all the chatter, and went into the main control room, where the Supreme Leader usually sat. All around the walls were display screens and computers, with officers and scientists walking around, overseeing the facility. When George entered, the entire room quickly stood up and saluted him. George waved his hands, and the officers went back to their work.

George called over the Chief Scientist, Kayden, who walked over hesitantly. Kayden was a shy person, but was also brilliant when it came to engineering and science feats. He was the one who designed the airship fleets.

"Kayden, I need you to continue your work on Hive Mind." said George quietly, so other people wouldn't hear. George saw Kayden's mouth drop slightly.

"Sir, with all due respect, Hive Mind isn't...a very good idea…" said Kayden, "The auxiliary fusion matrix is...extraordinarily unstable. To try to reignite it would risk alot…"

George shook his head, "I don't care about the risks. This project could bring us everything we've ever wanted. We could control the world with it."

Kayden squeaked slightly. His ego had always been undersized. "Alright, sir, I'll see to it that Hive Mind is completed as soon as possible."

George nodded, "Thanks, Kayden…"

George dismissed Kayden, then began to think about his plans. Johnny and Mavis had always been a small nuisance. He had argued against attacking the monsters in the first place. But now, he could finally bring about true change. Mavis and Johnny were but a small, insignificant speck. He would let the two of them attack. But they wouldn't be able to stop him after Hive Mind was completed…

George winced. His synthetic kidney was bothering him again. He walked out of the control room, going towards the Supreme Leader's sleeping quarters, and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the bed.

* * *

Mavis was rested, clean, and ready to take action. She spent her time mainly practicing telekinesis, or trying to learn how to swim well. When she wasn't doing this, she was sleeping or watching the news, which didn't help her. Every time she turned on the TV, she was greeted with the sight of a ravaged and destroyed Washington DC, or with the wreckage that her hurricane had left in Texas.

Johnny woke up on the second day after they came back to Paradise. Mavis was sitting next to him, as she sometimes did, holding his hand, when he suddenly opened his eyes and tried to scramble up.

"Woah, Johnny, calm down...you're safe." said Mavis, forcing Johnny to lie back down again. Johnny complied, resting his head back down against the pillow. His face was still scratched up, but he _did_ look better. Much of his skin had returned to its original color, and his eyes looked as energetic as ever.

"Hi Mavis…" he murmured, "We back in Paradise?"

Mavis smiled, "Yeah, we are. The Supreme Leader is dead."

Johnny didn't really react to this statement. He simply grunted, pushing himself into a sitting position. After a while, he muttered, "He deserved it."

Mavis looked at him, "You think so?"

"Yeah," said Johnny, "He killed my family. He killed your family. He deserved to die, no matter what he did or said at the end."

Mavis stared at the wall. She knew that Johnny was speaking the truth. The Supreme Leader is the reason her life was so messed up. He was the reason she was in this situation at all. But as Mavis thought of the Supreme Leader, a slight flash of sadness crossed her mind. He had died trying to make up for what he did.

Mavis sighed, "Whatever...it doesn't matter. You should stay in bed for at least the next few hours. I'll get you some food and water. You must be starving."

Johnny nodded, realizing his hunger, "Yeah...food sounds pretty good right now." he murmured, tilting his head slightly to one side.

Mavis smiled, and kissed him, "I'll bring some food over," she said to him, then using her vampire speed, whizzed off to the kitchen, grabbing some lamb stew, and returned a second later with it, handing it to Johnny.

Johnny immediately began wolfing down the soup with a vigor that would've even impressed Mavis. He was _very_ hungry. After finishing his first bowl of soup, he asked for two more servings before he was full.

Later that night, Mavis helped Johnny out of headquarters, where the two of them walked around the island, talking and admiring the view. Techno saw them from the deck of the _USS Iowa_ , and whizzed over, "I sure am glad that you are okay, Master Jonathan! Here, I need to give you this…"

Johnny winced as Techno injected him with something. Mavis rolled her eyes, "Techno, don't badger him."

"Right, sorry, Miss Dracula. I'll be off." said Techno, and whizzed away.

Above them, the cloudless skies revealed a full moon, shining brightly above them and bathing everything in a silvery glow. The skies were truly clear, Johnny able to even see the galaxy from his vantage point. Next to him, Johnny noticed Mavis also staring up in awe at the sky. The two of them had never truly appreciated the seclusion of the island until now.

Johnny subtly held Mavis's hand, "It's beautiful, isn't it?" he asked her. Mavis nodded, still staring, her mouth slightly open. "I never knew...that it looked so awesome." she murmured.

Johnny laughed, "Yeah, well, _awesome_ is one word to describe that."

Mavis turned to Johnny, and the next thing Johnny knew, the two of them were kissing. When they broke the kiss, Johnny saw a tear slide down the side of Mavis's face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" asked Johnny, "you okay?"

Mavis nodded, wiping her face, "Yeah, I'm fine...it's just that I've been thinking...was it worth it? All this war, all this fighting...and yet we also have such peace."

Johnny didn't know how to respond. It seemed as if when they weren't fighting, they were enjoying their time on Paradise, and when they weren't enjoying their time on Paradise, they were fighting.

"As long as I'm with you...it's all worth it," said Johnny, "All the death, all the destruction...I wouldn't have missed one second of it. Not for my family. Not for your family. As long as you're with me, it's always gonna be worth it."

Mavis blushed, "You're awesome." she said.

"Nah," said Johnny, " _We're_ awesome. As long as we're together, everything will be fine. For both of us."

Mavis kissed him, "You're right...I shouldn't be thinking about this type of stuff...wanna go to bed? We can have some _fun_." Mavis emphasized the last word, making Johnny gulp slightly. "Alright Mavis...come on."

The two of them went back down into headquarters, both anticipating what was to come.

* * *

Tiberius climbed up the stone stairs, each step causing him pain from his wounds. His grandfather had inflicted some bad wounds on him...but no matter, in the end, he still defeated his so-called family.

Tiberius was climbing through the mountain ranges of Kamchatka, an area famed for legends of magic and the unreal. Some of those legends being real. As Tiberius jumped across another crevice in the ground, he began to take note of the black stone that was beginning to become more and more prominent to him. The black stone wasn't made of volcanic rock like how the humans around here thought. It was actually made of Netheryte, a stone-like material that often formed as a side product of magic.

Tiberius could already feel the magic within the mountain. It called to him, drawing him nearer and nearer. Finally, Tiberius reached the entrance of a cave. The place looked incredibly old, a cold wind sending shivers down his spine even with his armor on. Tiberius looked around, using his senses to pinpoint exactly where the entrance was, when finally-

"There you are." muttered Tiberius, as he punched a hole through the floor, revealing stone stairs that led deep into the mountain. Tiberius walked down the stairs, activating his armor's lights in order to help him see. The place gave off an eerie feeling, as if the cave itself didn't like Tiberius.

Finally, Tiberius got to the bottom, where there was a musty cave, this one with a dusty old carpet covering the ground, and a sphere in the center. Tiberius immediately went over to the sphere, and touched it lightly.

As soon as Tiberius touched it, the sphere began to glow, rotating around quickly. Crevices appeared on the formerly smooth sphere, and light began to come out of these crevices, creating lines. Soon enough the lines formed what the surface of the earth resembled, each continent outlined by these glowing lines.

Tiberius smiled. After nearly a century, it was still here. A voice suddenly resonated out of the sphere. It was a female voice, gentle and friendly.

 _Whom would you like to see?_

"I would like to see where Mavis Dracula is," said Tiberius, "show me. Now."

There was a slight delay, as the orb grew silent, then the voice came back,

 _Very well._

The orb suddenly changed, growing transparent. Then an image slowly came into focus in the orb, showing Mavis. She was clearly sleeping. The image vanished, and was replaced by the earth-replica, except this time, there was a white dot in the middle of the ocean.

 _There is the person whom you seek, stranger._

Tiberius stared at the orb, then put his hand on it. There was a slight sizzle, and Tiberius felt a light _thunk_ as something dropped into his armor pockets. Tiberius opened his pockets and grabbed what was in there, pulling out a miniature version of the orb, in the palm of his hand.

Tiberius smiled. Finally, a way to reach Mavis, no matter where she was. She appeared to currently be on an island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Tiberius stood up, and turned around, heading out of the cave, and walking back to his jet. He knew where to go to now.

* * *

Mavis woke up. She had slept well that last night...more than well. Great, actually. Her head was resting on Johnny's chest, which was steadily rising up and down. Mavis sighed, getting up and telekinetically throwing her clothes back on. Techno wasn't in headquarters, so Mavis assumed that he was outside, working on something.

Last night had been great. She never quite understood how pleasure worked, never experimenting herself until she had her first experience with Johnny about a month ago. That was the first time. Now, it was the third, and Mavis was enjoying it more and more each time.

Mavis shook her head. She couldn't get lost in thoughts regarding sexual pleasure right now. She had to focus. Tiberius. George. The War. Behind Mavis, Johnny stirred in his sleep, mumbling something, but continued snoring.

Mavis turned back towards the table in Headquarters, where she saw two bowls of chicken soup that Techno must've prepared for them. Mavis smiled. She would never take human food for granted ever again. As she sat down and began eating, Techno whizzed through the door, "Ah, I see that you have woken up. Excellent!"

Mavis nodded, "Thanks, Techno…" she murmured, still a little sleepy.

Techno bowed, "Alright alert, Miss Dracula. I'll go back out now to check on the _USS Iowa_. I'll be right back."

With that, Techno whizzed out the door.

Mavis turned back to her food. She sighed contentedly. Life was good right now. At least, better than if they were fighting.

Little did she know, someone who wanted to fight her was flying towards her location right at that instant.


	44. Tragedy

As Johnny slowly opened his eyes, he sighed with content. Last night was great. He leaned over, grabbing his clothes from the ground, and threw them back on. Mavis was nowhere in sight, so she was probably outside doing something. In the corner, Techno was busying himself with cleaning up headquarters.

When Techno saw Johnny, he whizzed over, "So glad you're awake, Master Jonathan! I have prepared you breakfast, if you want any."

Johnny nodded, "Sure...just one serving though."

Techno whizzed off into the kitchen, where there was a loud clatter as plates and utensils were all organized, and soon enough he was back, handing a bowl of chicken soup to Johnny on a tray.

Johnny smiled, "Thanks, Techno." he said, slurping up some of the soup. It tasted better than usual. Maybe that was because of his hunger, or maybe it was just his imagination.

After finishing breakfast, Johnny thanked Techno, giving him the dishes, which he cleaned up in two seconds, and went outside to look for Mavis. Outside, the sun was barely up, since it was still early in the morning. Johnny found Mavis standing on the other side of the island, staring at the horizon.

Johnny walked up behind her, "Hey." he said.

Mavis jumped, startled by the sudden appearance, "Oh, hey." she murmured, looking back to the horizon. The sunrise had just began. Johnny smiled, remembering the day he showed Mavis her first sunrise.

As the crack of light first appeared on the horizon, Mavis's eyes immediately lit up. She had grown so used to sunsets and sunrises by now. They happened twice a day, after all. But now, it was hard to ignore its beauty.

Johnny grabbed Mavis's hand and said, "Listen, we gotta talk about what we do next," he said, "Mavis, you listening?"

Mavis's vision jarred. Her mind went back on reality. The war. "Oh...sorry," she mumbled, "I was distracted. Anyways, what's going on?"

Johnny shrugged, "That's the question. We don't know what's happening."

Mavis thought for a moment, "Well...I've been thinking. George is probably the Supreme Leader now, and Tiberius is still hunting us. We have two enemies right now."

Johnny nodded, "Right, I also thought of the possibility of George becoming Supreme Leader...but didn't you kill him? I thought you stabbed him?"

Mavis sighed. She couldn't hide this forever from Johnny, "When I was about to stab George, I had a change of mind…" she murmured, "I didn't kill him, but I seriously wounded him. I was hoping he would die of his injuries, but I couldn't just kill him. That isn't right."

Johnny stared at her. Mavis saw a flash of anger that ran across his face, but it was quickly replaced by a neutral face. "Next time," said Johnny, "we kill him. Got it?"

Mavis fidgeted uncomfortably, "I'm sorry for that," she said, "I know that I should've killed him. But it just didn't feel right."

Johnny sighed, "Yeah, you probably had a point. But these people are _evil_ , Mavey. Evil. Next time you get an opportunity to kill them, you kill them. Got it?"

Mavis nodded, "Alright."

The two of them retreated back into headquarters, where Johnny turned on the TV, changing channels. It was mainly on the same stuff that's been happening. Storms, hurricanes, the earthquake, civilian casualties, possible tsunamis…

As they watched the news channels flash by, Mavis suddenly saw something that Johnny passed by too quickly for him to see it, "Wait! Go back...yeah, right there."

The two of them watched the news reporter on the TV.

 _Today at 3:29 am, the United States Weapons Development Team declared full separation from the United States, declaring what appears to be an open revolution. They have renamed themselves as the Federation of Unified Nations, and have openly invaded parts of Africa and South America. The President of the United States has ordered full military action, and the potential use of nuclear weapons, to stop them._

Mavis glanced at Johnny, "Alright...now we know for certain that George survived…"

Johnny growled, "He's trying to invade the weaker countries first...I see. We should do something to stop them. We're the only ones who know what the Federation is truly made of. If anyone tries to fight them, they'll get destroyed. The Federation is too technologically advanced."

Mavis was about to respond, when suddenly Techno whizzed into the room, "Master Jonathan and Miss Dracula, I have important news to show you. It actually concerns what's on the TV screen right now."

Mavis and Johnny watched as Techno projected a holographic image of a TV news reporter, who was talking.

 _The Federation of Unified Nations, who declared independence from the US, have also declared war against every nation in the world. World Leaders are meeting in an undisclosed area to talk about how to deal with this threat. There is no evidence that the Federation has anything that could actually do the world harm-_

"Heh, they got that one wrong." muttered Mavis under her breath.

 _-but they have so far been successful in capturing relatively weak or poor countries, such as Angola and Zimbabwe. The African United Assembly has ordered a complete lockdown of all countries in the African Continent, and have deployed thousands of soldiers to defend them._

The hologram fizzed out as the News Channel cut to advertisements.

Mavis turned to Johnny, "They won't be able to hold out for long. Not against the Federation's technology."

Johnny sighed, "Yeah, but what can we do about it? We're still considered as terrorists by both sides, remember. We can't just jump out there and help."

"That doesn't mean that we can't do anything," said Mavis, "There has to be something that we can do about the Federation, something that can reveal to the stupid world how powerful they actually are!"

Johnny shrugged, "Well...let's see, what can we do…"

For the next few minutes, Johnny, Mavis, and Techno sat at the table with pencils and papers, drafting ideas for what to do. They had many ideas, from fighting for the African soldiers at the front lines, to infiltrating the Federation's main facility and destroying it, to assassinating George. They all had their pros and cons.

Finally, after Johnny threw his fourteenth crumpled up piece of paper into the trash can, Techno brought up the problem of Tiberius.

"If we do decide to go on the offensive, then we potentially risk giving out our location," said Techno, "given that Tiberius is hunting Miss Dracula, I think we should go with a stealth mission."

Johnny nodded, "Yeah, we don't want to worry about Tiberius while we're infiltrating a facility. He's probably the most powerful we've ever faced."

That was when the alarms started blaring.

Techno, when building headquarters, had installed sirens and alarms that would ring if anything came within fifty miles of their island. It had never rung before. Now it was ringing.

The reaction was immediate. Johnny grabbed his doom blades, while Mavis turned into a bat and ran out the door, with Johnny and Techno scrambling behind her. Outside, everything looked normal, except-

"There's a stealth jet 90,000 feet up," said Techno, "37.8 degrees north, 67.9 degrees west. The jet's descending as well…"

Out to the side, the _USS Iowa_ 's guns suddenly swiveled up. Three missiles were launched from the ship up towards where the stealth jet was. Mavis saw a few explosion, but couldn't tell what was happening even with her extrasensory perception.

"Stealth jet is still flying," said Techno, "Wait...missiles incoming."

"What?" asked Johnny incredulously, before a missiles suddenly became visible in the sky. "Oh, this is gonna suck." said Johnny. Mavis and Johnny began scrambling back into the headquarters, before-

 _BOOOOOOOM_

Behind them, the missiles collided with some sort of energy shield that was surrounding the island. The shield became visible for a second, absorbing the explosions from the missiles, before turning invisible again.

"Island Shields are at 84%," said Techno, "Stealth jet still descending."

By now, Mavis and Johnny could both see the jet. It was black, like the _Death's Bane_ , and was similar to the jet that they flew before they stole the B-2 bomber. As it descended, the _USS Iowa_ launched yet another volley of missiles up at it, but this time, the missiles were deflected by an unseen force. Mavis immediately recognized it as telekinesis.

"Tiberius." she muttered under her breath. How did he find them?

The _USS Iowa_ went on the full attack, launching dozens of missiles. Each missile was deflected, until finally-

 _BOOOM_

One missile managed to hit the jet, tearing off an entire wing. As the jet began spiralling towards the ocean, Mavis saw a small speck jump out of the back of it. Tiberius.

The speck landed in the ocean, creating a decent splash, and the rest of the jet was torn to shred by the _USS Iowa_.

There was a second of silence, broken by Techno.

"Life form detected in the ocean, Human Genetics, age is 100 plus." said Techno, "Most likely this individual is Tiberius. I would advise extreme caution."

Mavis and Johnny silently watched the area where Tiberius had landed anxiously. There was a moment of silence, before Tiberius suddenly jumped out of the water right in front of the two of them, activating his sword.

"I have you NOW!" yelled Tiberius, slashing down at Mavis with as much force as he could muster.

Mavis rolled out of the way just in time, and Johnny also backed up, not wanting to get in a 1 on 1 fight with Tiberius. Techno deactivated himself and went back into the relic suitcase, and the _USS Iowa_ stopped firing, probably because it didn't want to accidently hit Mavis or Johnny.

Tiberius lunged at Mavis yet again, forcing Mavis onto the defensive, where she held Tiberius in a swordlock. Johnny took this opportunity to stab Tiberius right through the chest, but right as he was about to do this, Tiberius sensed his movement and broke the sword lock, jumping out of the way just in time. Johnny saw himself running at Mavis instead.

Mavis, fortunately, was fast, and dodged Johnny's stab, turning into mist temporarily, then rematerializing.

"Sorry," muttered Johnny, turning back on Tiberius and leveling his two doom blades.

"Don't mention it," grumbled Mavis, also looking back to Tiberius, who was watching her apprehensively.

"You can't hide, Mavis!" yelled Tiberius, sounding slightly hysterical, "I've found you now!"

Mavis took the initiative this time, turning temporarily into mist and flying in circles around Tiberius, rematerializing right behind him and slashing him right across the face. Tiberius flew back, slamming into a tree. Mavis's strike had cracked Tiberius's mask, a part of it flying into the sand. Behind it, Mavis saw eyes...human eyes.

Tiberius roared with anger, blasting Mavis back with telekinesis, slamming her against a rock, where she cried out with pain. Tiberius approached her, but was stopped by Johnny, who attacked with his doom blades at that moment.

Tiberius and Johnny were quickly locked into a dense swordfight, Johnny completely abandoning offense and focusing on defense, letting the doom blades do the blocking for him. Tiberius frustratingly slashed and hacked at Johnny's defenses, but couldn't get through.

Mavis, meanwhile, was trying to get back up. Her back was bleeding very badly. Her face was covered with sand and blood, and she was barely conscious. As her eyes focused on what was happening, she saw Johnny, being pushed back by a frustrated Tiberius, who couldn't get past his defenses.

Mavis tried to force herself up, but groaned with pain yet again. Her body was literally refusing to comply with her mind.

She suddenly heard Johnny cry out with pain, and turned around in time to see Johnny get one doom blade knocked out of his hand. Tiberius telekinetically blasted him back, slamming him against a tree, knocking his other blade out, and stabbed Johnny right through the chest.


	45. New Motives

The world froze for a second for Mavis. She watched Johnny fall, almost in slow motion, to the ground. _He can't die,_ thought Mavis, _not after what we've been through_. But even as she thought this, she felt Johnny's life force growing weaker and weaker until...nothing.

Johnny was dead.

Instantly, the sky darkened. The temperature dropped by fifty degrees, causing the water around them to begin freezing up. Tiberius hesitated, not sure what to do, and not sure what was happening.

Mavis's eyes, usually bright blue, had turned solid black. "You killed him." she whispered. Her voice, although in a whisper, resonated loudly through the darkness, as if something was amplifying her voice by a hundred times.

Tiberius drew his sword again, activating it and pointing it at Mavis, and charged. There was a blast of black energy, a massive shockwave that flattened all the trees on the island, crushing every rock and pebble, and Tiberius was thrown back so hard against the ground that his armor completely cracked open, revealing an old human underneath.

Mavis stormed over, each step leaving behind a trail of ice. Ben tried to stand up, but when he did, a crack opened up in the earth underneath him. He fell, waist deep, into the crack, and slowly fell deeper and deeper into it.

"No, please-" pleaded Ben. He was frantic, desperate, but Mavis didn't care. She didn't know what empathy was anymore. She didn't know what mercy was anymore.

"What do you want?" screamed Ben, as he was pushed farther down the crack in the ground, "Just kill me!"

Mavis's eyes met Ben's. Ben saw nothing but two dark, empty pits. Devoid of feeling. "You will be known for nothing," hissed Mavis, "everything you've worked for. Every goal you've accomplished. Everything will be wiped clean."

There was another loud crunch, as Ben was forced into the crack completely. He was now holding onto the surface with one hand.

"I am Tiberius!" he screamed, "You can't silence me! You can't-"

"You are nothing." said Mavis, "You will be remembered for nothing. You will be praised for nothing. The world will know nothing of you."

Ben's form became transparent. His screaming became a dense chatter of bones. His skin and flesh melted away until he was a mere skeleton. Then the skeleton burst to ash, and was carried out into the ocean by the wind.

The temperature returned to normal. The ice melted away. Mavis's eyes became blue again. She slowly walked, as if in a trance, towards Johnny, where she collapsed onto the ground next to him. Mavis tried to sense his life force. She tried to sense the bright, pleasant life force that she was so used to.

Nothing.

Mavis sobbed. She had never felt this useless in her life. Johnny was dead. Slowly, and shakily, Mavis grabbed a doom blade from the sand and activated it. She slowly brought the blade up to her neck, and closed her eyes.

This is what Johnny would've done. This is what she had to do. She was nothing without Johnny. Mavis felt the tip of the blade on her skin already. She took her last breath, and-

"Mavis, drop it."

Mavis's eyes opened, and she turned around. She didn't actually care about who it was. She just wanted someone to distract her from the reality of what happened.

It was Dracula. Her dad.

Under normal circumstances, Mavis would've been happy to see her dad, but now, she didn't even care. She glanced at him, then said, "Hi dad."

Dracula walked up to her slowly, "Mavis, listen to me. There's-"

"Is he dead?" asked Mavis, still wanting to doubt her own abilities, "Is he really...gone?"

Dracula paused. "Yes...yes, he's dead."

Mavis didn't cry. She didn't try to act sad. Dracula had just confirmed what she feared the most. Johnny was truly dead. Mavis picked up the doom blade again.

"Mavis, don't do this," said Dracula, "Johnny wouldn't have wanted you to take your own life. That's just about the opposite of what he would want."

Mavis shook slightly, "I don't know what to do without him," she murmured, "without him, I have no life."

Dracula paused for a moment, "I came back to tell you a way of bringing Johnny back."

Mavis immediately dropped the doom blade. She rounded on Dracula, "How?" she asked, looking a little hysterical. "Tell me."

Her dad held up his hands, "Listen...we ghosts are bound by natural laws. We cannot interfere with you directly. But listen, the android I created for you...Techno, I believe you named him, he has the key to bringing back Johnny."

Mavis was silent for a second, as she thought. "How can we heal the dead though? I thought death was the one incurable disease."

Dracula shook his head, "No. There was one cure...created in the twentieth century. It's dangerous, Mavis. The plan I have installed on Techno is dangerous. Promise me that you won't get killed."

Mavis glared at her dad, "I don't care if I do," she said, "If I get killed, I'll die trying to bring back Johnny. He would've done the same."

Dracula sighed, "My time is short….I cannot stay any longer. Goodbye, Mavis."

With that, Dracula vanished.

Mavis stood there, breathing heavily. She had a new goal in mind now. Forget the Federation. Forget about the aliens. She needed to bring back Johnny. And she was willing to sacrifice anything for that, including her own life.

Mavis opened her suitcase and grabbed Techno, activating him. When Techno saw Johnny's body, he immediately buzzed over, "Master Jonathan is dead…" murmured Techno.

"Listen, Techno," growled Mavis, "How do we revive Johnny? Is there any way possible? Dracula told me that you would have an answer to it."

"Hmmm...yes, I suppose there is," said Techno, "But the process of acquiring such an antidote is risky, and admittedly suicidal as well."

"I don't care." said Mavis, "Tell me how to get it."

Techno paused for a moment, "Very well, Miss Dracula. In the twentieth century, a scientist by the name of Sadovsky Ruslan created a so-called cure to death. He apparently used it to bring back his two daughters from the dead in front of an audience."

Mavis leaned forward, her eyes hungry, "How do I get it." she hissed excitedly.

"Right now, there are none in this world," said Techno, "Sadovsky Ruslan died in the Battle of Stalingrad in World War 2. He shredded his work and destroyed all his cures so the Nazis wouldn't get their hands on it."

Mavis threw her hands up in the air, "Well how am I supposed to get it if it doesn't exist?" she asked frustratingly.

"There is a way," said Techno, "But it involves magic. Ancient magic. Back in the 1420s, your grandfather, Vlad Dracula, created a time portal. He was scared to use it, however, and hid it in a cave in Russia, out of fear of the wrong person getting their hands on it. Recently, the Russians have discovered it, and have closely guarded it, not knowing how to use it themselves, but not wanting anyone else to have such technology."

Mavis sighed, "So...what you're telling me is that we'll need time travel."

"Yes, that is essentially what I am saying," said Techno, "We'll need to find the portal, go back to the 1940s, and steal a cure. However, there are many complications that we will need to get past."

"Like what?" asked Mavis.

"First of all, we'll have to consider the time change," said Techno, "Time is relative, but when you go through the portal, you technically enter into an alternate reality, where time does not go the same speed. According to my calculations, time in the 1940s if we go through the portal will travel 5x slower than time in this world."

Mavis nodded her head slowly, "So...one day in the 1940s would be 5 days here."

"Precisely," said Techno, "Then there's the variable assimilation module. If you are to enter into the portal, then you will go back in time, but apart from you, the second-nearest person to the portal will also be forced into the time-warp continuum. And since there is a portal open to Tiberius's world in Bhutan, two individuals from that world will be forced back in time as well."

Mavis tried to wrap her head around this, "So...if I were to enter the portal, another person from this world...and two people from Tiberius's world would also be forced into it."

"Exactly," said Techno, "Lastly, we'll have to have a way of preserving Johnny's body. We'll need to find somewhere in this world safe enough to hide it, until we come back."

"So...we can't bring Johnny with us?" asked Mavis, "Why not?"

"The portal doesn't work on nonliving beings," said Techno, "Of course, I don't count, because I'm an android, so I can come along."

"Alright…" murmured Mavis, "So where do we go to find this portal?"

"At the port of Ushki, Russia." said Techno, "That is where the portal is located."

Mavis stood up, "Alright then," she said, "This place is still hidden from the rest of the world...so...I think we s-should keep Johnny's body here."

Techno bowed, "Of course, Miss Dracula."

Mavis walked over to Johnny's body. His eyes were closed. He could've been sleeping. Silently, Mavis telekinetically dug a hole through the ground, about four feet deep. Techno whizzed over and created a lead-iron containment pod. Mavis slowly lowered Johnny into the pod, and looked at his face one last time.

 _I'll come back_ , she thought, _and when I do, you'll also come back_

With that, Mavis shut the door of the containment pod, and covered up the entire thing with sand.

She turned back to Techno, "Let's get going." she said.

Techno didn't move. He was staring at the _Death's Bane_. "Unfortunately, the _Death's Bane_ seemed to have suffered some major electrical problems due to...frosting?" he said in a confused tone, "Why is there frost on the _Death's Bane_?"

Mavis remembered how cold it grew when she released her anger on Tiberius. That was probably the reason.

"How long would it take to fix?" asked Mavis, walking over, looking at the _Death's Bane_. It sure looked pretty bad. The engines were completely frozen, and one wing had completely snapped off the rest of the plane due to the rigidness of the ice that had formed on it.

"At least a few days," said Techno.

"That's too much," said Mavis, "We'll take the _USS Iowa_ instead, come on."

The two of them ran over to the _USS Iowa_ and boarded it. The entire ship was ran by a single AI, kind of like the _Death's Bane_. As Techno entered in the coordinates, the entire battleship retrieved anchor and began sailing towards Ushki, where the portal was.

As Mavis watched Paradise slowly fade from few behind her, she kept on thinking, _Next time I come back to Paradise, I'll be able to bring Johnny back. I'll be able to save him_. The thought kept nagging her throughout the entire ride, making her eyes glow a little whenever her mind went to it.

* * *

George was sitting at the control panel, overseeing the preparations for his invasion of Italy and Spain, when his chief scientist ran back up to him, "Sir, operation Hive Mind is successful on trial #39!"

George immediately sat up, "Good," he said, "Deploy it over as many countries as possible. Aim at the larger ones first, those are the ones that matter."

Kayden nodded, "Yes sir!", and scrambled off.

George sat back down, relaxing a little. Everything was going according to plan. Without the Supreme Leader in power, George was finally able to focus on world conquest. Soon enough, Hive Mind would be deployed amongst the most important countries in the world: The United States, the United Kingdom, China, and Russia. He would soon have the loyalties of everyone in those countries. He would be unstoppable.

On the African Front, his troops were pushing through Nigeria and Chad, and his men were nearly finished with pushing out the last resistance fighters in the Congo. The world's threats of nuclear attack meant nothing to him. He possessed anti-missile defense systems that were far more advanced than anything the rest of the world could throw at him. All he needed to do was ignore Mavis and Johnny, and focus on the big picture.

George smiled. This was going to be too easy.


	46. Time Spiral

Protasov Yegor was a Russian officer working at the Ushki mining facility. He was one of the two hundred Russian officers who were supposed to guard the facility. Why they were guarding it, Protasov didn't know. The only thing the mine ever produced was coal, and coal wasn't in too high of a demand in Russia. There were many rumors circulating on why the mine was guarded so much, from secret weapons that were hidden in it, to a time machine. Protasov didn't believe these rumors, maintaining a neutral stance that the mine was heavily protected only because it was located near some trade routes that might have pirates in it.

As Protasov gave the 18th all-clear signal of the day, he sighed. It was really _boring_ , having to sit here all day, staring at the open ocean. At first, it might seem like good scenery, but after a while, it just becomes straight up boring.

At the port, four fully-armed Russian Military Destroyers were docked. That was another thing Protasov noticed. They were in one of the most isolated places in Russia. Maybe close to a few trade routes, but still very isolated. Why would they need four advanced Russian destroyers? It didn't make any sense to him.

Whatever. He was here to do a job, and was being paid for it. Keep watch over the port, and alert the facility if he saw anyone try to infiltrate it. It was a tedious task, but the pay was decent.

Just as Protasov was about to fall asleep again, he heard a light roaring sound, as if a rocket was flying towards him. He opened his eyes, and looking at the horizon. Immediately, his eyes grew wide and his mouth flew open. There was a missile flying towards the mine entrance. The entrance was a massive door made of metal, but it wouldn't stand against a full-on missile strike.

Immediately, Protasov grabbed his walkie-talkie, "Code Red! Code Red! Missile inbound, heading straight for the mine, I advise immediate shut down!"

On the other end, a deep voice quickly replied, "Alright, setting up-"

The missile collided with the mine entrance, cutting through several layers of metal before exploding inside, blasting the entire mine apart from the inside. Protasov was blown off his feet by the force of the blast, but scrambled back up, grabbing a rifle from a nearby rack, when he saw what was behind the doors.

Now he knew why the mine was so guarded, so important. Behind the massive mine entrance, was a huge ring of light. As soon as the doors opened, the ring disintegrated, turning into a liquid-like substance, and flowing out into the port, reforming over the ocean.

Out in the ocean, Protasov spotted a...battleship heading straight for them. Protasov shook his head. It couldn't be a battleship. Battleships were pretty much extinct in the modern age. They had been replaced by destroyers. But sure enough, it was definitely a battleship.

Already, alarms were blaring, calling all soldiers to take up their arms. Out in port, the four destroyers moved to intercept the battleship. They launched missiles, fired their main batteries, and even fired their smaller machine guns. Nothing got through. Everything was stopped in midair by some sort of energy shield.

Protasov loaded his gun and ran out of his post, joining the dozens of russian soldiers already making their way over to the port. The battleships had stopped right outside port, and trained its guns on the destroyers, opening fire.

With a massive explosion, three out of the four destroyers were instantly vaporized. The last one was cut clean in half, its crew jumping over the edge, panicking. The battleship then launched another volley of missiles. These missiles were smaller, and split into dozens of tiny explosives. The explosives fell over the russian soldiers, many of whom were instantly vaporized. Those who weren't were blown back into walls, or thrown into the water, suffering burns and cuts.

Protasov, apart from a shard of glass hitting his arm, was fine. He grit his teeth and followed a dozen other men who weren't too badly injured into a speedboat, and they began zipping straight for the battleship.

* * *

Mavis was almost at the portal. The _USS Iowa_ was only about ten meters in front of the ship, but was grinding against the ground by now. The waters were too shallow for the battleship.

"Miss Dracula, fourteen life signatures detected climbing over the railing," said Techno, "What should we do?"

Mavis sighed, then turned to the door, "Take the controls, keep pushing for the portal," said Mavis, "I'll take care of the soldiers."

Mavis walked over to the back of the bridge and opened the door, walking out. She turned into a bat, and immediately spotted the group of Russian soldiers scrambling around on the deck. Without even waiting, Mavis materialized in front of them and blasted them back with a telekinetic burst. Twelve of the soldiers went flying back, over the edge, and into the water. The last two opened fire desperately, but it was no use. Mavis grabbed one of the soldiers by the arm and threw him over the edge herself, then went for the last soldier, who was backing up, firing his gun without avail. The bullets were stopping right as they exited the barrel.

Mavis grabbed the soldier's gun and tore it out of his hands, bending it into a U-shape and throwing it over the edge of the battleship. Mavis then punched the soldier lightly, knocking him out. She didn't like the idea of killing people if they weren't aliens or working under George.

Mavis went back to the bridge with super speed, appearing on it in less than 0.2 nanoseconds, and asked Techno, "How much farther?"

"Only two meters, but we've grinded to a complete standstill!" yelled Techno, "We might as well just get off the ship and go there ourselves!"

Mavis shook her head, "We can't do that, these guys have tanks and crap, I saw them when I was fighting the people who boarded us. I don't want to kill them, so we can't go overboard!"

The AI of the _USS Iowa_ suddenly said, "Warning: incoming missiles."

Mavis looked up, "Wha-"

 _BOOOOOM_

The shields flashed as literally dozens of missiles collided with the _USS Iowa_ 's energy shields. The shields absorbed up all the explosions, but the shields were reduced to 2%.

"We need to think of something, fast!" yelled Techno, "If we don't, these guys will be able to punch through the shields with their bullets!"

Sure enough, the shield indicator was slowly crawling down as the Russians continued to pound their ship with bullets.

1.99%...1.98%...1.97%...

They only had a few minutes to figure out what to do.

"Miss Dracula, if we don't do something, we're really going to die!" yelled Techno, "We need something to make this ship move forward two meters!"

Mavis finally decided to do it the blunt way. She focused all her telekinetic power behind the _USS Iowa_ , letting her power slowly build up. She had created earthquakes, tsunamis, and hurricanes. She could lift a battleship 2 meters forward. At least she hoped so.

As Mavis focused, there was suddenly the sound of glass shattering, and a sniper bullet hit Mavis in the shoulder, causing her to cry out with pain. She continued to build up her power, even though it was causing her body extreme stress. Her vision was tinged with red and purple. She couldn't think straight.

Finally, Mavis yelled. A bright flash of light exploded out from the back of the ship, and the entire frame of the _USS Iowa_ was forced through the portal.

* * *

 _Dear Adolf Hitler,_

 _I, General Eichberg, was on the Eastern Front last night when the most odd occurrence happened. The Russians, while making their forth charge to drive us out of Stalingrad, were stopped by a most peculiar phenomenon. A portal appeared in the middle of the lake, and a battleship came out of it. The Russians immediately retreated after seeing it, their morale clearly crushed by what they believed to be a superweapon we developed. But it was the manner of the battleship that interested me the most. The technology involved to create such a beast is several decades ahead of our time. And apart from that, there seems to be some sort of artificial intelligence that runs the whole ship. After we scoured the ship, we found a robot, whom we captured, and two unconscious humans, who are currently in custody. Both of these humans are not held in any records that we have gone through. It is as if they were never born, but still appeared in this world._

 _The main topic of this letter is to address the potential that this battleship we have discovered could bring us. Our top engineers still haven't been able to crack the ship's security codes, but we are certain that if we do, we will be able to turn this war to our favor. The ship holds, from x-ray scans, what appears to be missile pods, extraordinarily fast-firing machine guns, and other things that even our engineers don't know about. If we are somehow able to incorporate this ship into our navy, it will be greater than even the Bismarck. The Nazi navy will be able to surpass anyone who would challenge it, even the Japanese. Because of this potential, I have ordered great sums of wealth to be put into cracking the security codes of the ship. It is a difficult task, but we believe that it will be possible after a while._

 _The last topic is of the two humans. We ran genetic tests on both of them. One is a perfectly normal male, but the other one has a genetic sequence different to that of humans. This female appears to be an alien. However outlandish this may sound, it is true, and has been confirmed by our top genetic scientists. Both humans are currently unconscious, but have been taken into custody. Because they are non-aryan, I expect that you will be sending them to the concentration camps._

 _Heil Fuhrer_

 _-General Eichberg_

* * *

 _General Eichberg,_

 _I would first like to congratulate you on your steadfast hold on the city of Stalingrad. The area is of utmost importance for the Nazi Empire. However, regarding the battleship and this so-called alien you've captured, I will not be sending them to the concentration camps immediately. I will first have them tried in court, then I will interrogate them on how the battleship works. This is a much more efficient way than making our scientists focus on something that could be solved through simple interrogation. After that, I will send the human to the concentration camp and have him killed. The alien, however, will be sent to Dr. Herz, where we can perform medical and genetic experiments on her. This can potentially revolutionize cross-species genetic sampling, which we can use to better the Aryan race even more._

 _In regards to the battleship you have acquired, I will personally see to it that the security codes you are speaking of are cracked. I have just finished reviewing the armaments on the ship, and they are all more advanced than anything I have ever seen. As you have said, some of the weapons are completely foreign to our chief scientists! We just need to interrogate the two individuals until they give us the codes, then we can use the ship to its fullest extent._

 _Heil_

 _-Adolf Hitler_

* * *

George was sitting at his desk, his fingers clasped together. He was thinking. Thinking about the events that had unfolded recently.

Yes, operation Hive Mind was in progress, and every second that past meant another hundred humans that were under his control, but at the same time, the movements of Mavis and Johnny, for the first time, surprised him.

Attacking an isolated mine in northern Russia? A place with fairy tales that speak of time travel? Could it be true that Mavis and Johnny actually believed these stories? Could the stories actually have been true?

As these thoughts ran through George's mind, he began to formulate a plan to find out. Mavis and Johnny were definitely at Ushki. The only question was why. He also knew for certain that after the battle was over, Mavis and Johnny had both vanished, along with the stolen _USS Iowa_.

It was a strange sequence of events, but as George thought about it, he began to realize its insignificance. As if fairy tales and folklore ever actually spoke the truth. George chuckled to himself. He would focus on completing his goal of world conquest, then would worry about the so-called time traveling stories he was hearing regarding Ushki. He couldn't make the Supreme Leader's mistake. He would not get distracted.


	47. New Allies

Mavis's eyes opened slightly. She had a serious headache, and her feeling of sense was slightly blurred. She was in...handcuffs? Mavis frowned. She didn't think that that was part of the plan.

The plan. Time travel. The 1940s. What had happened?

Mavis's thoughts immediately jarred into reality. She had gone through the time portal, and blacked out afterwards. Where was she? Perhaps the Russian government had somehow captured her? Or was she actually in back in the 1900s?

Mavis was too lazy to break her handcuffs, even though she could with telekinesis. She go up from the cold cot which she was laying on and walked over to the door. She seemed to be in some sort of hallway, which was lined with holding cells. Outside, a guard stood sentry. Mavis noticed that the guard was wearing an old-looking army jacket, and held a bolt-action rifle, something that was far less technologically superior than what soldiers should be using. On the soldier's right arm was an armband with...what was that symbol? It was pretty ugly in Mavis's opinion.

That's when suddenly, there was yelling, as a soldier was suddenly forced into the hallway, flanked by two more guards. The guards yelled, "Go to the back of the cell, hands above your heads!" at Mavis, who immediately recognized a thick German accent. Mavis rolled her eyes. She could beat up these idiots easily, but she played along, putting her hands above her head and facing the wall. There was the sound of a lock sliding open, a door opening, and someone being shoved through. Then the door shut again.

Mavis turned around, and saw the soldier who was lying on the ground. He looked horrible. There were burn marks all over his body, and he had a black eye. Mavis ran over, leaning down and helping him up, "You okay?" she asked.

The soldier didn't respond at first, "I...I'm fine…" he muttered, "Thanks."

Mavis looked at the soldier, and suddenly recognized him. "You were the person I knocked out." she said, remembering how she knocked out a soldier on the deck of the USS Iowa, "How did you get here?"

The soldier was breathing hard, "I don't know...I woke up here...these guys, they're Nazis! I think...I think we went back in time, but I don't know how!"

Mavis calmed the soldier as much as she could, "What did they ask you?" she said, a little urgently.

The soldier sighed, "They...they thought I had the security codes to your battleship. Which I didn't. So they tortured me." he glared at Mavis, "What's up with you people? Why did you have to drag me into this?"

Mavis, slightly taken aback by the attack, sighed, "Listen...I know you're confused right now, but we have to escape. It's the only way. There are others who could help us."

"Like who?" asked the soldier, "This is the 1940s, nobody knows who we are."

"There are others who are in the same situation as we are," said Mavis, "Two of them, to be precise. I'm sorry, but I had to come here, and I knew I would bring three other people here with me. You're one of them."

The soldier stared at the ground glumly, "Great, now I'm stuck in the past. My wife and children probably think I'm dead…and it's all because of you."

Mavis grabbed the soldier's arm, startling him slightly, "Listen," she hissed, "I came here to find a way to prevent my husband from dying. If your wife was going to die, would you do this to save her?"

The soldier glared at her, but didn't answer, instead choosing to drag himself onto the cot. Mavis took this as a sign to tell him her plan, "Listen, we can both get out of here alive. You just have to follow exactly as I say. Got it?"

The soldier sighed, "Alright...nothing better to do anyways. How are we going to get back to modern times though?"

Mavis hesitated. She didn't actually know the answer to that. Techno probably did. Techno. Mavis's eyes widened, "Techno!" she said aloud, sitting up suddenly, "We need to get Techno!"

"Woah, woah woah." said the soldier, "Who's Techno?"

"He's-" Mavis hesitated, not wanting to sound too outlandish, "He's an android that helps me."

"Hmph," the soldier didn't even question it, "too much weird stuff's been going on. I just wanna go home, and see my family again."

Mavis sighed, "Yeah...me to."

That's when she heard footsteps at the other end of the hallway. "Listen," she whispered urgently to the soldier, "What's your name?"

"My name?" asked the soldier, as if he was surprised, "It's..Protasov Yegor. You?"

"Mavis Dracula," said Mavis, and when Protasov's mouth dropped open, she immediately cut in, "Listen, I'm no terrorist, no matter what you think. There are nazis coming to take me right now. I'll let them take me, but be ready to fight. Got it?"

Protasov nodded, "Alright," he said, "I'll be ready."

Mavis immediately zipped back to her cot, acting as if she was just sleeping, as the doors opened yet again. Two Nazi guards walked in, "Alright, you're coming with us." one of the them said, pointing at Mavis.

Mavis complied, letting the soldiers grab her by the arm and drag her out the door. As the door shut behind her, Mavis could only think of what she would do.

Sure, she could just kill everyone in the room, and rescue Protasov. Or she could do it the sneaky way by trying not to attract anyone. It was a difficult choice, either way.

Mavis was led up a flight of stairs into another hallway, where she was brought to the room at the end of it. It was a cold, concrete square. In the middle was a table with two chairs on either end of it. Mavis was forced down onto the first chair, the soldiers chaining her to it (which she easily broke telekinetically), and walking back to the door.

On the other end, a Nazi officer wearing a tan uniform walked forward from the shadows. He had a clipboard, and sat down across from Mavis.

"My name is Paulis Latzke," said the officer, "I'm here to interrogate you."

Mavis didn't say anything. She knew that she could escape easily, and could kill everyone in the room without a doubt. The only question was when. She wanted to know what these guys were up to.

After a while of silence, Paulis said, "You appeared in the middle of a lake, apparently through a portal, with a battleship. How did you create such a portal?"

Mavis looked at him, "I don't know," she answered truthfully, "why do you think I know?"

Paulis smiled, "You're a tolerant one, just like the other person, eh? Well...whatever. Guards, if you will."

One of the guards turned Mavis's chair around and took out a baton. He swung it down hard on Mavis's head, but Mavis stopped it telekinetically in midair. "What the…" he murmured. He swung it again. And again. But each time, Mavis deflected it with telekinesis.

The officer also looked confused, "What is this?" he hissed.

Mavis yawned, "I'm awfully bored. You know that I can kill all of you right now, right here, right? I'm just not doing it 'cause I feel like seeing you guys try."

The officer growled, "Whatever you're doing...it won't be enough. Guards, go to the next level. Let's see how you stop this." he said, grinning sadistically.

One of the soldiers took out a pistol and aimed it at Mavis's leg, but before he could pull the trigger, Mavis telekinetically opened the clip box, and dozens of bullets began spilling onto the ground.

"The clip, you idiot!" yelled the officer, "You've been through training. Give me that-"

The officer grabbed a rifle from the nearest guard and pointed it at Mavis's leg, but before he could fire, Mavis twisted the rifle into a U-shape and broke her shackles, standing up.

The guards looked hesitantly at each other, not sure on what to do. The officer took out a pistol and pointed it at Mavis's face, "How did you-"

Mavis vanished, then reappeared next to the officer, grabbing his arm and breaking his legs. The officer went down with a scream. The two soldiers turned, trying to get out of the room, but Mavis telekinetically threw them back to where she was and knocked both of them out.

Mavis opened the door herself and ran down the hallway, past doors. He came across a group of Nazi soldiers, whom she knocked out easily, and was finally back at her main holding cell. Using vampire strength, Mavis kicked down the door, startling Protasov, "Come on, we're getting out of here," she said urgently, "I knocked out a few Nazis, you can take their weapons."

Protasov nodded, scrambling up. The two of them ran out of the cell, turning the corner and running up the stairs, where Protasov grabbed a bolt action rifle that one of the knocked out guards had.

Mavis ran through the hallway, where she came across a door with the "exit" symbol over it. She kicked the door down, not even checking to see if it was unlocked, and the two of them ran through, going up flights of stairs before finally, they made it, bursting through a door. They were in what appeared to be a hospital. Doctors and soldiers milled around, some of them arguing and some taking notes.

Mavis immediately pushed Protasov underneath a table, then slid in with him, trying not to attract attention. There were alot of people in here who had firearms.

While Mavis was hiding, she suddenly heard a commotion on the other end of the hospital. "Wait here," she whispered to Protasov, then turned into a bat and fly out from underneath the table.

Mavis flew over to the commotion. Someone had just entered the hospital, with a group of soldiers trying to restrain her. Mavis immediately knew that this person was different. She wore a black dress, and had short but well-cut hair. Her eyes were startlingly green.

"Get your hands off me! What do you mean, I work for the Russians? Who the hell is Russian? What is this place?"

Mavis flew closer to her, until she was literally right above the woman, and continued listening. The woman was now trying to fight back.

"Get me out of these handcuffs! What the hell did I do? I woke up in a car, alright? What dya want?"

Mavis decided this was a good time to barge in. She transformed back into vampire form behind everyone, and said, "I would let her go if I were you."

All the soldiers and scientists immediately turned to Mavis. They noticed that she was here. Before anyone could do anything, Mavis snapped her fingers, breaking the legs, arms, and fingers of everyone in the room apart form herself, the woman, and Protasov.

Mavis ran over to the woman, "Listen, I'm here to help. You must be confused. I'll tell you what's going on…"

Mavis telekinetically unlocked the woman's handcuffs. "By the way, what's your name?" she asked, looking at the woman.

"I'm…" the woman seemed a little overwhelmed by what's been going on, "I'm Fubuki." she said, standing up a little straighter.

"Alright, I'm Mavis," she said, "Protasov, come on, we're going."

Protasov peeked his head over the edge of the table. He saw Fubuki, and sprinted over. "Who's this?" asked Fubuki, still confused.

"This is Protasov," said Mavis, "He's good, in the same situation as we are."

Protasov nervously shook Fubuki's hand. Mavis noticed that his cheeks went slightly red when he did this, but ignored it.

"Alright, let's get going." said Mavis, leading the way out of the hospital. Outside, dozens of soldiers had already set up barricades around it. Mavis cursed. She had completely forgotten about the nazis for a second.

As the nazis leveled their weapons, Mavis yelled, "Get behind me!", and erected a wall of telekinetic energy, which deflected the bullets. Protasov loaded his bolt-action rifle and opened fire. Whenever Mavis saw a nazi get randomly hit by a bullet, she knew Protasov was there.

Fubuki was still hiding behind the shield Mavis had created when she yelled, "Look out!"

Mavis turned around in time to see a soldier sneak up from behind her and draw a knife. Before he could do anything, however, a burst of green flame turned him into a pile of ash. Mavis slowly turned to Fubuki, who was the source of the fire.

"How did you do that?" asked Mavis, "I didn't know you had powers!"

Fubuki fidgeted with her hands uncomfortably, "Yeah...um...it was pyrokinesis." she mumbled, "Come on, we still have to get outta here!"

Mavis nodded and turned back to the line of soldiers who were firing at them. Her telekinetic wall was still holding, but she knew that she needed some way to get rid of these soldiers.

Mavis yelled, and the wall of telekinetic energy blasted outwards, knocking back all of the soldiers, and disintegrating their barricades easily. Fubuki, Mavis, and Protasov all ran down the stairs, when Mavis grabbed onto Fubuki and Protasov, and went supersonic, speeding down the streets with incredible speeds.

Eventually, using extrasensory perception, Mavis found a way out of the city entirely. She sped straight down the road, and soon enough was out of the city. Behind her, Mavis glanced back at the city. Using extrasensory perception, she was able to make out the letters on the quickly-disappearing sign that was right outside of it.

 _Berlin_

Mavis turned back, still running at Mach 14, and sped out into the distance.

* * *

 _Loading...core generator at 99.98% capacity...reboot complete_

 _Scanning...minor lifeforms detected…._

 _Current Status: Safe_

 _Protocol #92840.a.673 initiating_

 _Err...time and date not found_

 _Err...Geography not recognizable_

 _Protocol #15349.c.217 initiating_

 _Welcome back, G4. Initiating AI and display surface…_


	48. Escape

Mavis didn't stop running until they were at the border of Nazi Germany. By that time, she was pretty tired, actually putting effort into the speed. Fubuki and Protasov were hanging onto her back, only adding to the weight.

Mavis decided to stop at the edge of a forest, far away from any nearby settlements. She dropped Fubuki and Protasov off in a little clearing, which was hidden by a thick grove of trees. It was a good place to hide.

Soon enough, they had a fire going, thanks to Fubuki's pyrokinesis, and were eating freshly neck-snapped squirrels from Mavis. Protasov was particularly good at skinning squirrels, since he was a soldier, so he cooked it for them.

"It's so weird though…" murmured Fubuki after getting the fire started, "how did we come back in time again?"

Mavis sighed, "This might sound really bad...but I was the only one here who wanted to come back in time. The portal, when you enter it, will force three other individuals in with me. Two from Earth, and two from your world."

Fubuki sighed, "So...it's your fault I'm here right now.". She didn't even try to hide the accusatory tone in her voice.

Mavis nodded. She would have to get used to this type of stuff. "But I have a plan to get us back," she said, "We just need to find the cure and Techno."

By then, Mavis had already explained why she travelled back in time, and why she needed Techno so much. They had to have some way to go back to their time. Fubuki had explained who she was. She was a pyromancer from Tiberius's world, and worked in his army.

Fubuki nodded, "Alright...I mean, I guess I have no choice, do I?"

"No," said Mavis, "No, you don't."

Fubuki glared at her squirrel, then ate it. "Mmm...this isn't bad," she said, "kind of tastes like Shmoopi."

"What?" asked Mavis, "What's that?"

"It's an animal that exists in my world," said Fubuki, "it's good, but also common. People eat it every day."

Mavis nodded, turning back to the fire and tearing off a squirrel leg. It still felt weird, being back in time. Being in a time when the world was on the verge of tearing itself apart.

"So," she said, "Tomorrow, we need to head out, to...what did you call it?"

"The Reichstag," said Protasov, "It's where the top Nazi Leader meet. They would have information on where Techno is. At least I'm pretty sure they would.

"Alright, so we'll go there tomorrow," said Mavis, "I can interrogate the people there, you guys just have to make sure nobody else comes in and nobody escapes."

Fubuki and Protasov nodded, "Alright." they both said.

"Fubuki, do you have any other powers apart from pyrokinesis?" asked Mavis, "you seem strong. Show me what you can do."

Fubuki looked surprised at the request, but replied, a little shakily, "Yeah, I mean, I also have some telekinesis."

"You do?" Mavis looked at her with surprise. They were more similar than Mavis thought, "Show me, I wanna see you do it."

Fubuki raised her hand, and a boulder nearby started to slowly rise above the ground shakily. After a while, though, it fell back with a thud.

"I was never good at telekinesis," said Fubuki, "You're much better than me. I could tell from what you did at the hospital today."

"Yeah," chimed in Protasov, "how did you do that, anyways? How did you get telekinesis?"

"Protasov, you should know the answer to that," said Mavis, "vampires come with telekinesis as a side ability. It's common knowledge. It's just that it takes time and effort to perfect it."

To prove her point, Mavis lifted the same boulder Fubuki was trying to lift, and crushed it to dust. She noticed a flash of envy go across Fubuki's face.

"Wow…" murmured Protasov, "So...is it true? You actually aren't a terrorist?"

"Nope," said Mavis, "I was just a normal person, trying to live a normal life, before the Supreme Leader attacked me…"

"Supreme Leader?" asked Protasov, "Who's that?"

Mavis sighed. There was alot of information these two didn't know, "It's a long story," she said, "just trust me. I'm not a bad person. I just want to help Johnny…"

Mavis fell into silence. Fubuki watched her for a moment, then stood up, "Well, it's getting late. I'm gonna go and get some leaves to sleep on."

Mavis waved her hands, "Don't bother with that," she said, "I got it.". Without even looking, dozens of nearby leaves were telekinetically forced into three cozy bunches, which were arranged around the campfire to maximize warmth.

Fubuki muttered, "Thanks." and lay down on one of the leaf bunches. Mavis sat down on the leaves next to her, and said, "I'm really sorry, you know, for all of this."

Fubuki glanced at her, "I mean...I would see why you would come back in time. I guess I would've done the same thing. As long as I get outta here alive, I'll be cool with it." she said.

Finally, Fubuki asked the question Mavis was dreading. "How did you get so strong?" she asked, "I've been training my whole life...and I've never gotten even close to your strength."

Mavis didn't want to answer this question. But for the sake of trust, she did.

"I…" Mavis paused, "you get strong by practicing, but for me...I was assisted...by...emotions."

Fubuki looked up at her, surprised, "What? What does that mean?"

Mavis sighed, "Listen...in my world, I've lost family members and friends. All my family and all my friends. These types of things make you strong. They force your strength to pass boundaries you didn't know were there."

Fubuki looked at her, "Oh," she murmured, "I'm sorry...I didn't want to-"

"No, it's fine." said Mavis, "I need someone to talk to about this stuff anyways. Your telekinesis might be rusty right now, but you have alot of potential. That's what really matters."

Next to Mavis, she could hear Protasov snoring already.

Fubuki smiled, "Thanks...in my world, your social class is determined by your strength, so everyone just wants to become stronger. I've always been at the bottom. Can't even lift a stupid rock." she muttered.

Mavis could feel the weight behind these words.

"So...who are you here for? What's his name?" asked Fubuki.

"Johnny," said Mavis, "He's my husband, and right now, he's...dead."

"Oh," murmured Fubuki, "Johnny is a good name. I have a friend in my world named Johnny. He's at the top of the class. Always beating everyone else."

Mavis smiled, "Yeah...weird how that happens. I'm gonna go to sleep now."

"Alright," said Fubuki, "Goodnight, Mavis."

"Goodnight." murmured Mavis sleepily.

* * *

"I'm telling you, I won't say the access codes!" Techno said, "And get these stupid wires out of me, they're itchy!"

"Tell us the security codes," said the German interrogation officer, launching another shock into Techno. For a normal robot, this would've caused extreme pain, but for Techno, it just tickled. He laughed, "Stop, stop! It tickles too much!"

The german officer growled with frustration. He had already tried electrocution, water, alcohol, fire, even a sledgehammer had no effect on him. What was this thing?

"Just saying," said Techno, "I'm detecting a disturbance in the neogenic flow systems that run through your bicoordination module complex, it can be powered up by realigning the centrifugal ray manifold. Would you like a demonstration?"

Before the officer could even respond, Techno did exactly what he said. Instantly, the lights burned super bright, until they dropped onto the ground. Rather than shattering like normal glass however, each light bulb exploded like a grenade, knocking out the officers and the guards.

Techno sighed, "These guys have no sense of technology at all," he said, "anyways...what should I do..."

Techno needed to do something to tell Mavis where he was. Something that would get their attention. According to the history records installed onto his main computer, TVs weren't a very common thing yet at this point in time.

Techno had an idea, but it was very, very risky. Incredibly risky. He could hack the entire Nazi radio system and broadcast his location. He knew that Mavis could travel at Mach 13, and would be able to make it in time easily. However, the risk was that all the other Nazi officers and Adolf Hitler would also know where he is, and would certainly send troops to engage him.

Was there any other way? He could just search for Mavis on the radio waves, but that would take too long.

Techno whizzed out of the interrogation room, frustrated. He heard someone yell, "HEY!" behind him, but without looking, he detonated that soldier's grenade, killing him.

Techno whizzed out of the holding area he was being held captive in, and went outside. Immediately, he infiltrated the Nazi files, looking at air reconnaissance photos from the British, American, Russian, and German pilots, scanning each one with incredible speeds.

Finally, he found it. A photo of an isolated forest in far-southeastern Germany. He immediately saw three individuals sitting around what he scanned out to be a fire. Three more scans identified two of the individuals as Protasov Yegor and Mavis Dracula. The last person was unknown.

Techno decided to screw it. He located a relatively isolated area in northern Germany. A town by the name of Arnis. He began to hack the Nazi radio frequencies…

* * *

 _Mein Fuhrer,_

 _It is essential for the three individuals that escaped from the hospital yesterday to be stopped. It cannot be accepted if they run free. We have extracted evidence that may suggest that the female is not, in fact, a human. From video evidence, we actually believe that she is a vampire. Apart from that, we also acquired another individual. Her genetics also do not match that of the human genome, so it would be reasonable to say that this third person is not human either, and may be a second vampire. For the sake of protecting the Aryan Race, we must eliminate these threats._

 _As far as the problem of the robot goes, my mechanics are still having trouble with coaxing the information out of it, and just yesterday, the robot also escaped. How he did remains a mystery to me, but it is clear that these individuals are not normal. They come from either the future, or from another world entirely. They are too advanced and too dangerous to be kept alive. I suggest you to exterminate them as soon as possible, without question._

 _For the battleship, our engineers still have not cracked the security codes, and are working literally 24/7 for it. I'm afraid that this type of advanced weaponry also comes with extraordinarily advanced security. We will continue the push for cracking the codes, but that would more than likely come at a later time._

 _Heil Fuhrer_

 _-General Eichburg_

* * *

 _General Eichburg_

 _You are, at least under my impression, correct when you say that these individuals come from the future or from another world. I have never seen such destructive force in the hands of so few. However, we are in luck. Just today, if you have not heard, the robot that escaped out clutches somehow hacked the Nazi radio frequencies, and broadcasted his location to everyone in Germany. This is, under no doubt, an attempt to meet up with the three individuals who escaped from custody yesterday. I have deployed the eighth German Army to Arnis, where the transmission came from. These individuals may be able to hold out against the Nazi police, but I doubt that they will be able to hold out against an entire army._

 _As far as the battleship goes, continue your work. The codes may be advanced, but I do have good faith in your ability to crack it. Our german codebreakers have made some miraculous discoveries in the past, and they need not stop now. I will personally send the entire team under the Chief Scientist to your location to assist you. However, your focus is to remain on the battle of Stalingrad. You are to hold your position under all costs, while doing this. It may seem like a difficult task, but I have faith that you will be able to carry it out._

 _Heil_

 _-Adolf Hitler_


	49. Disciple

Mavis woke up to the sound of a familiar voice, repeating itself over and over again. Her eyes fluttered open temporarily. It was 4:52 am. She was still lying on her leaf bed. Next to her, Fubuki and Protasov were also snoring. Out in the distance, Mavis could still hear the voice. It was being transmitted, as if on an intercom.

Mavis immediately scrambled up. If it was an intercom, that meant that the nazis might've found their location, and were trying to draw them out. She immediately woke up Fubuki and Protasov, both of whom grumbled a little, but quickly grew serious once they heard the intercom.

Whatever was being said, it was too far away to be distinguishable. Right now, it just sounded blurred. But something about the voice was familiar.

"Do you think it's the Nazis?" asked Protasov, gripping his rifle a little tighter, "if it is, then we'll have to fight our way out of it. Or we can run."

Mavis looked back at Fubuki and Protasov, "Wait here, I'll go scout it out as a bat," she said, "don't go anywhere unless I don't come back within 15 minutes."

Fubuki looked as if she wanted to go as well, but nodded, "Alright," she said, "don't engage in battle though, we have to do that together."

"I won't," said Mavis, "we gotta save the ass-kicking for when we all have a fair chance, right? I should be back within ten minutes, just wait on me."

Mavis turned into a bat and flew off towards the source of the noise.

Protasov and Fubuki waited, not saying anything. Protasov fingered his rifle uncomfortably, and Fubuki slowly began saving up energy for a pyrokinetic blast. One minute passed. Two minutes. Four minutes. Six minutes.

Fubuki began to grow worried. Then, she saw it. A tiny speck that appeared yet again from the treeline, heading straight for them. It was a bat.

"Mavis!" Fubuki called, "Is it alright? Or do we have to fight?"

Mavis rematerialized as a vampire and began scrambling around, "We gotta move now," she said urgently, "I mean, we aren't being attacked, but we have to move now."

"What?" asked Protasov, "What's going on here? Why do we have to move?"

"It's Techno," said Mavis, "He...he said that he was in Arnis. He's broadcasting it through every intercom and every radio and every television in Germany. I think he's hacked the radio frequencies!"

Fubuki stared at her, "So…"

"So we have to go!" yelled Protasov, "Come on, Techno's essential to getting back to our present day, right? Let's get moving then!"

Mavis nodded, "Alright, get over here," she murmured, grabbing Fubuki's hand and forcing Protasov to piggy-back ride her, "Alright...he said it was...towards the sun. I hope his predictions are accurate." muttered Mavis.

She jumped from the ground, accelerating to Mach 16 in a matter of seconds, flying over trees, mountains, rivers, and canyons. Mavis could only hope that she could reach Arnis before the Germans got there.

* * *

Techno liked the city of Arnis. After he reached the city and broadcasted the message, he kept the broadcasting on for twelve hours, blocking out all Nazi signals. The city itself was quite isolated, and had a great view. But since Techno was a robot, he couldn't appreciate that. The city's 300 residents quickly evacuated after the broadcast began, which was nice, since now he wouldn't have to worry about civilian casualties.

Using his ever-growing technokinesis, Techno began preparing for the imminent German attack. He managed to create thirty automaton soldiers before growing tired, and having to stop to conserve energy.

Two hours after he broadcasted the message, however, Techno's sensors immediately began sending alarm signals. His head swiveled up, looking, and saw a reconnaissance plane fly overhead. There was a 78% chance that it was a Nazi plane, and a 22% chance that it was Allied. Unfortunately, neither choice really comforted Techno. Both meant trouble to him.

Without hesitation, Techno grabbed a bolt-action rifle from the tiny police department, and aimed it upwards. His calculations began working, factoring in wind speed, air resistance, temperature, moisture, clouds, and angle. He pulled the trigger, firing the bolt-action rifle up at the reconnaissance plane.

At first, nothing happened. Then, the plane began to tilt sideways, falling towards the land. Techno silently congratulated himself. He had managed to hit the pilot from where he was.

But then Techno began to think about the problems. There was a reconnaissance plane, which meant that there must also be an army nearby, waiting for reports. Once the army received no reports, they would assume that the plane was shot down and move in without intelligence data. Silently, Techno communicated to his automatons, ordering them to specific areas around the small town, preparing for the inevitable attack.

The attack eventually came in the form of artillery. Forty five minutes of endless artillery attacks, destroying house after house, crumbling the streets and cracking the walls. Techno sighed to himself. The Nazis were so naive. He knew how World War II strategy worked, and had positioned his automatons in areas in which they wouldn't be targeted, such as ditches and in the sewers.

Then came the Nazi attack. A full-on Panzer Division, with 309 tanks, rolled forward cautiously. Techno growled. The Nazis were playing this battle very safe, sending their elite forces to capture them, rather than a small group, which he was hoping for.

The fighting broke at 6:00 am, when Techno's automatons fired a missile at a tank, blowing it up. Three other tanks quickly moved in, firing their cannons and killing two out of the three automatons stationed in that area. The last automaton launched a second missile, which exploded on another tank, blocking the path of the other two.

Firing broke out from the buildings, as automatons began to fire anti-tank rifles, blowing holes in the tanks. As the battle drew on to thirty minutes, Techno realized that he had lost twenty of his automatons, while the Nazis still had 256 tanks left to spare. He was losing ground, fast.

Come on, Mavis, he thought, anytime around now would be great.

* * *

Mavis was pushing herself to the limit. According to her supernatural senses, she had just passed Mach 28, meaning that she was accelerating at the fastest she's ever gone. Apart from that, she was also using her telekinesis to shield Fubuki and Protasov from the air, which would have destroyed their bodies at this point. She was accelerating far too fast for any normal person to survive.

Finally, Mavis's extrasensory perception kicked in, and she suddenly heard gunfire to her east. She turned around, and in a nanosecond her extrasensory perception had found Techno, hiding in a small building, with three automatons guarding him. Around him were tanks, firing at a wall that Techno must've created to slow them.

Mavis turned around abruptly and launched herself at the city, exceeding Mach 32 in that instant, and finally jumping out of flight on top of the building that Techno was hiding in. Fubuki jumped off, and Protasov rolled behind the railing of the ceiling, taking out his rifle and opening fire at any visible person.

Mavis ran into the building, where she saw Techno in a corner. "Ah, Miss Dracula, you've finally arrived!" he said when he saw her, "I was starting to think that my plan didn't work."

Mavis grinned, "Oh, it worked. You okay? You look a little...rough.". It was true. Techno had a crack across his glass screen.

"Oh, that was nothing," said Techno, "A tank got a direct hit on me. Luckily, it only cracked my screen. It could've been much worse."

"Alright, well, I gotta get back out-"

BOOOOOOOM

Mavis turned around in time to see Fubuki unleash a blast of green fire in all directions, incinerating three tanks. She floated above the ground slightly, her powers fully activated. With another yell, Fubuki launched a blast of green fire at the next tank, whose front side got melted. Mavis saw the pilots scramble out and jump behind cover.

Fubuki was about to finish off the last tank, when suddenly, a loud crack went through the air. Mavis saw, with her extrasensory perception, a bullet graze Fubuki's cheek and hit a tree nearby. Fubuki quickly took cover, not knowing where the sniper was, as the last tank rotated its main cannon at her, firing.

Fubuki was blasted back, slamming into the ground. Mavis had to do something. Fubuki didn't look good.

Another gunshot sliced through the air, this one going straight for Fubuki's face, but Mavis didn't let it get close. She deflected the bullet easily, then walked outside slowly. She knew where the sniper was. On top of a bell tower about two hundred feet away.

The tank fired again, but Mavis deflected the shot so it missed them and collided with another building instead. She snapped her fingers, crushing the entire tank into a tin can. That's when she sensed it again. Danger. Imminent Danger.

Mavis ducked, right as a bullet flew through where her head just was. Without hesitation, Mavis stood back up, and crushed the bell tower. That was it. The sniper was gone. The tank was gone. The soldiers were gone. Or at least she thought.

There was more rumbling, as at least twenty more tanks rolled into view on the other end of the street. Mavis grabbed Fubuki, "Come on!" she yelled, "We have to take cover!"

Fubuki looked dazed, but Mavis's voice jarred her senses. She stretched out her arms towards the tank, and a burst of green flame shot out, incinerating the bottom of a tree, and causing it to fall in the way of the tanks. Mavis dragged Fubuki behind another wall, covering her from bullets using her telekinesis.

Mavis saw Protasov, standing on top of the ceiling, still firing his rifle, taking out the soldiers who were on top of the tanks. "Protasov! Get down here!" she yelled. Protasov wasn't safe up there. He was an easy target.

Too late. Protasov only heard what Mavis was saying right as a tank shot collided with the building. Protasov disappeared under a pile of rubble.

"No!" yelled Mavis. She ran over to the rubble, telekinetically digging through it. Behind her, bullets flew at her, but she deflected them without even putting in effort. Eventually, she finally found Protasov's body. It didn't look good. Blood was pouring from his face, and one of his eyes were...completely gone.

Mavis dragged Protasov back behind the wall, where Fubuki had gotten back up. Techno had whizzed back to where they were, and quickly took Protasov, giving him as much treatment as he could.

"I'll try to take care of him," said Techno, "But I won't be able to help the battle anymore. You two must take care of it."

Mavis nodded, then turned to Fubuki. It was only then she noticed something that she had never noticed in Fubuki. She looked...scared.

"Fubuki, you good?" asked Mavis.

Fubuki nodded, "I'm...I'm good, come on, let's go!"

Before Mavis could do anything else, Fubuki had flung herself at the enemy. Mavis followed, telekinetically throwing giant slabs of concrete at the enemy tanks. When Fubuki got close enough to the enemy, she unleashed a firestorm, destroying the first row of tanks. The next row opened fire with their machine guns, forcing Fubuki behind a tree. Mavis took this opportunity to strike. While the tanks were focused on Fubuki, she sent a massive shockwave down the street, flipping the tanks over, causing them to either explode or get set on fire by Fubuki.

Mavis thought it was over, until she saw the nazi soldiers that were going for them. There were at least sixty of them, armed with rifles and grenades. Without hesitating, they opened fire at Fubuki and Mavis. Mavis managed to deflect the bullets, but Fubuki was forced behind a wall, a bullet wound going through her arm.

Mavis ran up to the soldiers, killing them with ruthless efficiency. Her mind went on automatic kill mode: Run, jump, snap neck, run, jump, snap neck. After she killed her 27th german soldier, however, she heard a hissing noise, and saw a German soldier launch a missile at Fubuki's position, sending her flying back.

Mavis yelled, sending a shockwave out, knocking back all the soldiers. In an instant, she was by Fubuki's side, deflecting bullets for her. Fubuki was gasping, gashes and cuts covering her body. Her face was very clear now: she was scared. Very scared. Mavis felt a familiar sensation in her gut. A sense that something was slowly fading…

Fubuki was slowly dying.

Mavis turned towards the soldiers. She wouldn't let her die. Mavis needed something to end the soldiers. A single, definite blow that would finish them all off. Mavis suddenly remembered Tiberius, and what she did to him…

Mavis put her hand on the ground, and concentrated, letting her energy pour into the earth. At first, nothing happened. Then, there was a massive roar. A sinkhole with the width of New York Central Park opened up in front of her, swallowing the soldiers. Mavis collapsed onto the ground, breathing heavily. That was it. She had defeated them.

But it still wasn't enough. In front of her, another division of fifty tanks and a hundred soldiers were approaching them. Mavis couldn't even summon enough energy to deflect a bullet anymore. She was too...tired.

It was then when it happened. A metal thing came out of the forests from the edge of the city. It walked into the center of the street, blocking off the line of german soldiers and tanks. The thing, now that Mavis's vision slightly cleared, was a robot of some kind. It's head was an orb with three red glowing circles on it, which were definately eyes. It turned slowly towards the German lines.

Threat detected.

The robot's voice was cold and heartless, just like...well, a robot. The Germans opened fire, but their bullets simply pinged off the armor of the robot.

Useless.

There was a roar, as two massive guns suddenly popped out of the robot's shoulders, firing at the tanks. The bullets must've been specially designed, because they easily shredded through the tanks. Dozens of missiles launched from the robot's back, turning the sky into a firework show of red, orange, and black.

Mavis took this time to run back to Fubuki. She still felt her life force, but it was incredibly weak. Mavis slowly began to telekinetically force the bullets out of Fubuki's body, and telekinetically coaxed the wounds to heal. It worked. Kind of. Fubuki's breathing got better, and her life force was strong enough for her to move.

Mavis dragged Fubuki back behind the wall where Techno was. There, Techno quickly injected Fubuki with some medication, telling Mavis that she would be fine, then quickly went back to treating Protasov, who still looked pretty bad.

Mavis went back to the street to help clear the area of Germans, but by then, there wasn't anything to kill anymore. The robot had literally killed the rest of the Nazis. Mavis ran over to the robot, "What's your name?" she asked, "I'm Mavis."

The robot looked down at her.

I am G4. I came here after I received a radio transmission that had a 63.478% chance of being relevant to me. I assume the other girl is an accomplice as well?

"Yes," said Mavis, "Come on…"

Mavis led the robot to the back wall, where Protasov, Techno, and Fubuki were hiding. Mavis saw Protasov, and immediately knew it wasn't good. His face had turned chalk white. He was breathing erratically. His one eye found Mavis's, and he grabbed her arm.

"You...are the reason I'm in this state." he gasped.

Mavis felt tears forming, "I'm so, so, sorry…" she said.

"No...don't be...I always knew that I probably wouldn't make it out alive...Mavis, I helped you because I would do the same if I were in your situation."

Mavis didn't respond. She just looked at him. Protasov's fingers fumbled with something in his pockets, which he handed to Mavis. It was a necklace. On the center was a diamond, that was now covered with dirt and blood.

"I...I wanted to give this to my wife...for her birthday...it was going to happen in only two days…" he murmured, "Promise me, Mavis….that you'll give this to her."

Mavis nodded, "I promise." she said, "I'll bring this back."

Protasov nodded, "Finally...I can...rest…"

His head rolled over. A second later, Techno announced that he was dead. Mavis pocketed the necklace, and turned around. The robot broke the silence by introducing himself, and soon enough they were talking, exchanging stories. G4 was a battle robot from Tiberius's world, programmed by black market workers to be sold for battle. He happened to be the one to be chosen for the time portal.

A few minutes later, Mavis had buried Protasov in the city. His body was marked by a small rock, which had his name engraved on it.

That night, Mavis, Techno, Fubuki, and G4 hiked through the dense forest that surrounded the city. Everyone except for G4 was tired. At around 10:00 pm, they decided to set camp near a small stream they found flowing in the forest. Fubuki lit the fire, while G4 activated his sleep mode. Techno, by then, had fixed up Fubuki pretty well. She was now able to walk normally, although it did hurt her slightly to run.

As Mavis and Fubuki sat by the fire that night, Fubuki turned to Mavis, "You know...you shouldn't beat yourself up about Protasov…it was a good thing you did for him."

Mavis's eyes were dark as she stared at the fire, "I'm the reason he's dead. I've been the reason for many deaths lately." she grumbled, chucking a leaf into the fire.

Fubuki paused for a moment. She seemed nervous, "It's fine…"

Mavis waited, but then sighed, "What do you want to tell me, Fubuki?"

Fubuki glanced up, surprised, "What?"

"I can tell when people are hiding something from me," said Mavis, "it's a skill I got a while ago.". With bitterness, she realized it was the skill she learned from her dad.

Fubuki sighed, "I...I wanted to ask you...if I could become your disciple?"

Mavis looked up, very surprised, "Wait, what?!"

Fubuki fidgeted uncomfortably, "I've always wanted to grow stronger...it's been my dream to be the strongest individual out there. But today...you saved me from death. Twice."

"Why don't you ask G4 then?" asked Mavis, "He saved both of our asses."

"G4 is a robot, he can't teach me anything," said Fubuki, "You, on the other hand, have skill. I want to learn how to be just as strong as you are."

Mavis thought about this for a moment. Then replied, "Sure.".

Fubuki stared, "Wait, really?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "I can teach you...I guess.". She had never thought of teaching anyone else how to become strong or powerful. Maybe she could improve herself through this as well.

Fubuki nodded slowly, "Alright then…"

Mavis lay down on the ground, "Anyways, I would get some sleep, it's been a long day."

Fubuki sighed, "Yeah...it has been…"


	50. Welcome to Stalingrad

Mavis woke up the next morning to find everyone else already awake. Techno was talking to Fubuki, and G4 was standing guard silently over the entire group, his missiles looking threatening as ever.

"Miss Dracula, you're awake!" said Techno, whizzing over, "Fubuki and I were just discussing how to get back to our time."

Mavis sat up, her eyes immediately unfogging, "Oh, yeah...how are we gonna do that? You never told me how to get back."

"After we get death's cure, I'll be able to use my sensors to find the portal. The portal gives off very strong radioactive signals, believe it or not. All I have to do is use my sensors, and we can locate the portal from anywhere." said Techno.

Mavis nodded, "Mmmm...alright then."

Fubuki cut in there, "What do we do now then? We should get going to Stalingrad, get Sadovsky Ruslan, get the cure, and go back to our time."

"No," Techno said authoritatively, "you, Fubuki, are in no shape to fight right now. Your powers are drained, and so are Miss Dracula's. I would suggest a few days of rest, or preparation, before we get heading to Stalingrad."

"But won't the Nazis eventually find Sadovsky Ruslan?" asked Mavis, "You said he died in the battle of Stalingrad."

"He only died on the final charge, which hasn't happened yet." said Techno, "We have another week until that battle happens, in which we'll already have the cure, if everything goes according to plan."

Mavis struggled, trying to find an excuse to go, but finally slumped down. "Fine," she grumbled, "we can stay here…for now."

Fubuki was silent for a while, then said, "Um...Mavis, should we start training then?"

"Huh?" Mavis asked, then remembered that Fubuki was her disciple, "Oh, yeah...sure. Come on, I have an idea for that…"

The two of them stood up and walked a little to the side, a decent distance away from the campsite, when Mavis turned slowly towards Fubuki, "Alright," she said, "I thought we could get started with combat training. It'll be simple. Try to hit me with any attack you've got. If I can dodge it, I will."

Fubuki nodded, "Alright." she said.

Mavis stood there, ready.

Without warning, Fubuki unleashed a blast of fire right at Mavis, but when the fire cleared, Mavis was gone.

"What the-"

Fubuki turned around to see Mavis standing right behind her. Her fire didn't even come close to hitting her. Fubuki's hands glowed green, as she launched blast after blast of fire at Mavis, each one missing. She felt herself growing tired. If I can't hit her like this...I'll just incinerate the entire area. She thought.

Fubuki yelled, and a blast of fire flew out in all directions from her, melting a few nearby trees. But when all the fire was gone, Mavis was still standing in front of her, completely fine. "You're not concentrating hard enough," said Mavis, "Try harder!"

Fubuki concentrated, but before she could even do anything, an unseen force grabbed her and slammed her against the ground, "The enemy won't play fair either!" yelled Mavis, "You have to learn to concentrate under pressure!"

Fubuki's eyes glowed, and she unleashed three more bursts of fire, which Mavis was forced to block telekinetically. She then charged up to Mavis, and tried to punch her, but Mavis was faster. She intercepted Fubuki's punch with her hand, and telekinetically slammed her against a tree.

"Use your telekinesis!" yelled Mavis, "You have two strengths, but you're only using one of them!"

Fubuki telekinetically grabbed Mavis, and threw her against a tree, but before she hit the tree, Mavis turned into mist, flying high up and rematerializing back into a vampire in front of her, with one hand grabbing Fubuki's neck.

Fubuki had lost.

Mavis released Fubuki.

"So...wanna go again? Or are you tired?" asked Mavis, "I can understand if you are, you can just go and get some-"

"No!" yelled Fubuki, "I have to get stronger. This type of training is exactly what I need!"

Mavis, a little surprised by Fubuki's eagerness to train, nodded. For the next four hours, the two of them trained in the forest, Fubuki growing ever more tired with each fight. Mavis, in reality, wasn't actually putting in any effort, and blocked Fubuki's attacks with ease. If she wanted to get better, she would have to fight against the strongest, so she would be used to the weaker opponents.

Finally, after their seventeenth training session, Fubuki announced that she was too tired to continue. Mavis could see why. She was sweating pretty badly, and had bruises all over her body from Mavis's telekinetic attacks. "That was good," said Mavis, "you'll be able to grow strong like this in no time."

"You beat me every time," grumbled Fubuki, "I really hope that I can grow stronger like this...I've always wanted to be powerful."

Mavid didn't reply. She, out of all people, knew what power did to people. It corrupted them, made them do terrible things, and was the reason all her loved ones were dead.

As Mavis killed some squirrels for lunch, Fubuki spent her time lifting rocks from the ground. Mavis noticed this, as she twisted another Squirrel's neck. "Practicing?" she asked her.

"Yeah," murmured Fubuki, "I just don't understand...how I can't lift these stupid rocks."

Mavis sighed, "Concentrate harder, one of your problems is that you don't concentrate hard enough. I can see you making effort, but effort is nothing without conviction."

Fubuki nodded, closing her eyes, and the boulder she was trying to lift suddenly flew up ten feet. Fubuki opened her eyes, and immediately yelled, "Yes!"

Mavis grinned, "See, I told you it would work...Techno, go and cook these squirrels...yeah, thanks."

The boulder dropped back down again, and Fubuki began asking Mavis all sorts of questions. What powers did she have? How long had she been fighting? What's the limit to her power?

Mavis answered each one honestly, even though some of them were personal, but stopped when Techno announced that lunch was ready. Mavis and Fubuki munched down on Squirrels, which tasted surprisingly good. G4 told them that he didn't need to eat, since he was a robot, and instead, continued to stare at the surrounding landscape, constantly scanning for threats.

* * *

"A full Panzer Division... _gone_?" roared Hitler, slamming the table, "What are our generals doing? Are they stupid? They should've crushed the aliens!"

"Mein Fuhrer," said one of the officers in the meeting room, "These individuals are very powerful, far beyond human capabilities. They also had assistance from a fourth individual. A robot."

"A robot?" murmured Hitler, "Interesting...what did this robot do?"

"The robot was the reason our panzer division had to draw back," said the officer, "It was obliterating our lines with extreme firepower, and it also launched missiles at our tanks, destroying them."

Another officer spoke up, "Whatever this is, we don't believe its from the Allied Forces, or from the Russians. I've made the assumption that these are, in very literal terms, aliens. How they got here, and why they're here, I don't know why."

Hitler sighed, "I don't want to sit here and clobber ourselves all day for four stupid individuals," he growled, "Our men at the Eastern Front are almost at Moscow...we must focus our efforts on the war. Put all cities near Arnis in high alert, and have soldiers deployed there."

"And what about the battleship, sir?" asked the first officer, "Our codebreakers still haven't made progress."

"Keep pushing it," snapped Hitler, "Don't tell me that we get nothing out of the aliens arriving. Everything has a profit in it."

"Sir! Sir!", a communications officer burst into the room, but was being held back by the guards. "My apologies, Mein Fuhrer," said one of the guards, "This man just barged in-"

"I have information on the whereabouts of the aliens!" yelled the officer, "I know where they are right now!"

Hitler waved to his guards, "Release him. What is it, officer?"

The officer stopped for a moment to gather his breath, then spoke, "Mein Fuhrer, I was reviewing some stolen aerial footage of Germany, when I came across this."

He took out a folder and opened it. Inside, there were photos of a landscape, with forests surrounding it. "Over here-" the officer pointed to the top right hand corner, "You can see four small individuals. When we magnified the image by twenty times, we confirmed it was the aliens. This photo was only taken forty five minutes ago, they must still be there!"

Hitler paused for a moment. Should he go for it?

"Officer," called Hitler, turning to the first officer, "Order the 48th Panzer Division to relocate to these coordinates, call in the Luftwaffe as well. We're going to blow these aliens right off the planet."

* * *

Mavis and Fubuki were still eating their squirrels when G4's eyes suddenly rotated up towards the skies.

 _Threat Detected._

"What?" asked Mavis, scrambling up, "What's happening?". They couldn't have been detected that easily. She thought 1940s technology was bad.

 _Bombers inbound. Activating anti-aircraft gunfire_

Then Mavis saw it. Above them, at least fifty bombers were flying right for their location. These were old-looking bombers, and she began to see a bunch of small specks falling from underneath them towards the ground…

"They're dropping bombs!" she yelled.

Two massive anti-aircraft guns suddenly popped out of G4's back, and began firing up at the bombers. Mavis saw three bombers explode above them, but the bombs were still falling. Mavis summoned up as much power as she could, and sent a shockwave upwards, pushing the bombs back up, so that they blew up in midair.

That didn't stop all the bombs.

There was a massive explosion, and plume of dirt exploded near Mavis. Fubuki ducked behind G4 as another bomb collided with a nearby tree, setting it on fire. Techno whizzed around, slightly panicking, but still keeping his cool as much as possible.

Bombers are still alive. Activating Anti-Aircraft Missiles

G4 launched a dozen missiles up towards the bomber. At first, nothing happened. Then, there was a massive explosion in the air, turning the sky red for a seconds. When Mavis looked back up, she saw no more bombers. They had all been disintegrated.

Mavis was about to calm down, when more explosions started randomly blowing up areas in the forest. In the distance, Mavis was able to see the flash of artillery fire. They were too far away to engage.

"Come on!" yelled Mavis, "We need to-"

A massive explosion sounded, and Fubuki was knocked off her feet as an artillery shell landed right behind her. Mavis, without hesitating, ran to her, helping her back up.

"You okay?" yelled Mavis.

"I'm fine," said Fubuki, "Come on, we need to get moving! G4, can you give us some cover fire? We really need it!"

 _Of course I can_ , replied G4. His anti-aircraft guns retracted, and were quickly replaced by massive mortar cannons. G4 unleashed dozens of rounds of high-explosive energy at the artillery, blowing up several of the enemy cannons, but was forced to retreat after he received a direct hit with an artillery shell.

"Everyone on me!" yelled Mavis. She had told everyone in the group what that meant before she went to bed last night. Techno whizzed into her pocket, Fubuki climbed onto her back, and G4 turned into a slightly-burnt metal ring, which Mavis levitated telekinetically. Mavis concentrated, and went supersonic, going Mach 16.

As Mavis was going supersonic, she reached down into her pocket and pulled out Techno, telekinetically shielding Techno from the speeds, "Techno, How do I get to Stalingrad?"

Techno's glass screen began glowing a little, then Techno replied, "Go that way,", an arrow appearing on his screen, pointing towards an area a little too Mavis's left.

"Thanks!"

Mavis shoved Techno back into her pocket and went in that direction. She wasn't going to wait anymore. Nazi Germany was too dangerous to stay in. As Mavis whizzed through trees, rocks, mountains, and over lakes, she finally saw Stalingrad with her extrasensory perception. It was completely surrounded by artillery, tanks, and soldiers. The city itself had artillery shell holes everywhere, with buildings and shops crumbling.

Mavis whizzed over the Russians without them even noticing, and came out of supersonic speeds inside of a crumbling building, dropping Fubuki and Techno off there. G4, after being dropped by Mavis's levitation, reassumed his regular form.

"Where...are we?" asked Fubuki, rubbing her head, "You went very fast that time…"

Welcome grinned, "Yeah, well...welcome to Stalingrad."


	51. The Cure

After Techno finished lecturing Mavis on how dangerous it was to come to Stalingrad so early, Mavis decided to scout out where Sadovsky Ruslan might be. The city itself was relatively small, with buildings packed in close together. Most of the buildings had suffered at least one artillery hit. As Mavis turned into a bat and flew high above the city, the first thing she noticed was the lack of soldiers in the streets. There was literally nobody outside. Anyone who was flying over the city could probably mistake it for a ghost town.

Mavis flew down, going through each building. Some of them were completely abandoned, but others had groups of soldiers camping in them, trying to get warm. To Mavis, it wasn't cold at all. Being a vampire, she could survive in just about any temperature. Using her extrasensory perception, she tried to locate where Sadovsky was, but didn't find him. Mavis growled. She would have to do this manually then.

She managed to locate the general, who was hiding in a basement, surrounded by what must've been his officers. He appeared to be arguing.

"I need those troops to be relocated back to the front lines! Yes, yes, I know that they don't have food, but if they don't go back there, then we're all dead!"

"Sir, our men have been living off of rats and sewer water for the past week, you can't possibly expect us to go back to battle immediately. We'll be shredded immediately!"

"That's what soldiers are for!"

This comment made Mavis's eyes glow red. She rematerialized as a vampire, and coughed loudly to get their attention. The officers swiveled around to look at her, and the General stared.

"How did a woman get in here?" asked one of the officers. Before anyone else could do anything, however, Mavis had unleashed a telekinetic blast, knocking out the two officers, and appeared right next to the general, punching him in the stomach and telekinetically freezing him.

"Do you know the whereabouts of Sadovsky Ruslan?" she hissed, "Where is he?"

The General struggled, but couldn't move, his arms and legs frozen by telekinesis. "How are you doing this?" he growled, "I'm not telling anything to a woman."

Mavis's eyes glowed red, "You will tell me."

Mavis's mind control had also grown in strength exponentially since she had left the hotel. The general couldn't even help himself.

"He's being held hostage in the cafe two streets from here." he said in a monotone voice, "There are two guards that are watching over him."

This was too good. They had the location of Sadovsky. "You won't remember anything of this encounter," she hissed at the General, "You'll fall asleep. Now."

The general collapsed onto the ground, snoring loudly.

Mavis jumped into the air, turning back into a bat, and flew back towards the building where Fubuki, G4, and Techno were in. When she entered, Fubuki immediately stood up, "Well, d'ya know where Sadovsky is?" she asked.

"If my psychic powers work, then yes." said Mavis, "Come on, he's in a cafe apparently…"

The four of them silently made their way down the building, until they were on the streets. As they began walking towards the street in which the General said the cafe was on, an artillery shell flew over their heads and crashed into the street in front of them, causing a small crater to form.

Mavis signalled to the other three, who quickly followed her as she made her way around the crater, and continued walking down the streets. More artillery shells flew over their heads, blowing up buildings and sending heaps of dirt and concrete flying into the air. Mavis had to deflect an artillery shell that she felt was coming their way.

Finally, they made it to the street that the general had told Mavis where the cafe was. Sure enough, to the right side of the street, around the middle, was a dimly-lit cafe, inside, Mavis saw a dozen soldiers with her extrasensory perception, standing guard over what must've been russian civilian captives.

Mavis signalled to Fubuki and G4, both of whom nodded, and took positions on either side of the cafe entrance. Mavis silently made hand gestures to tell them when to strike.

3...2...1… "NOW!" yelled Mavis, barging into the cafe. Before the guards could even react, she had telekinetically thrown five of them against the wall, knocking them out. Fubuki blasted the rest with fire, as G4 moved in to stand guard over the cafe. The Russians looked frightened, especially at G4. Mavis could understand why. G4's massive guns and missile pods were just about the most threatening-looking thing in the room at that moment.

"Techno, translate this into Russian." said Mavis, "tell them that I'm looking for a certain Sadovsky Ruslan."

Techno processed the words for a few seconds, then said them to the crowd in Russian. The captives shifted uncomfortably as Techno said this, and in the back, one man stood up.

"I believe you're looking for me then." said the Man. He had a deep Russian Accent, but was still good at english. He looked skinny, but also had that mark of genius in him. His face watched Mavis, as if it was trying to calculate something in her.

Mavis walked towards him, "I've been looking for you," she said, "I came here to find a so-called cure to death."

Sadovsky stared at her. Fear temporarily rippled across his face, but it was quickly replaced by a stony expression, "I'm not giving it to anyone," he said, "It's for my daughter, not for whatever you want it for."

"I didn't come here to negotiate." without warning, Mavis's eyes glowed red, "Tell me where it is. And give it to me."

Sadovsky couldn't even resist what he was doing. Slowly, he reached down, and pulled a wooden plank up from the ground. Underneath, was a vial with gold liquid inside of it. Before Sadovsky could even grab it, Mavis had telekinetically fetched it from the ground, and ended the trance of Sadovsky.

Sadovsky stood there, horror streaked across his face as he realized what he did. "Give it back!" he roared, charging at Mavis. G4's arm swooped in, and grabbed Sadovsky by the arm, throwing him back against the wall.

Mavis watched him sadly, "I'm sorry, Sadovsky," she said, "but...I need this more than you."

Sadovsky glared at her, "Curse you…" he murmured, "If I could I would kill you right now! That's my daughter's life you're talking about!"

Mavis turned away, "I don't care about your daughter." she said, "I have more important things to do with it."

Sadovsky knew it was over. He couldn't fight. He couldn't run from this city. So he did the last thing he could do. Slowly, he reached down into the compartment that was under the plank, and drew out a gun.

G4 immediately turned on him. _Threat detected_ , He warned.

Mavis sighed. She could deflect any bullet easily by now. Sadovsky couldn't do anything to her. But it was only then that she realized that Sadovsky wasn't aiming for her…

"This is the price for my failure…" said Sadovsky. He pointed the gun at his mouth, and fired, splattering the walls behind him with blood.

Mavis stared. Fubuki stared. G4 scratched his head. "Techno, here," said Mavis, handing Techno the cure, "Keep this safe for me, will you?".

"Yes, Miss Dracula, of course I will." said Techno, retracting the vial into his body, "What should we do now?"

Mavis stared at the Russian captives, who were looking at her fearfully. They didn't have to die. They were perfectly innocent. Mavis sighed, "Let's get going," she said, "We have to leave before the Russians-"

 _Crack_

A gunshot was heard in the distance. More and more gunshots began cracking out into the night sky. Mavis heard yelling from the outer sections of the city. The Russians were already attacking. Mavis growled. How was she going to get out of this one?

Outside the cafe, Mavis saw dozens of German soldiers limping into position, some of them not even equipped with guns. Fubuki also noticed this, "Can you give us a lift out?" she asked Mavis, "you're pretty fast."

Mavis shook her head, "No...if I do that, I'll probably get shot by some soldier. Both sides want to kill us right now."

"So now what?" asked Fubuki, "we're trapped!"

"Not necessarily…" murmured Mavis, watching the Germans set up barricades and getting their machine guns in place, "we can fight...we can help the Germans."

 _I agree_ , said G4, _helping the German Forces is the only plausible way of pushing the Russians out of this city. After that is done, we will be able to fly out safely._

Fubuki stared at her, "Do you even know how to speak German?"

"I was born in Transylvania! German is my second tongue," said Mavis, "I'll be able to communicate fine."

Fubuki shrugged, "Let's go then."

Mavis and her group began walking towards the back of the barricade that the Germans had set up. As she drew near, Mavis noticed how the Germans were suffering from frostbite. Some of them were completely out of ammunition.

"Woman, what are you doing here?" Mavis heard one of the soldiers yell at her, "you'll get killed!"

The rest of the soldiers also noticed Mavis. She decided to speak at that moment, "Soldiers, I'm here to help. I brought some friends to support you guys." as she spoke, G4 and Fubuki walked forward. Most of the soldiers probably pissed their pants when they saw the massive G4, but Mavis also noticed several of them taking second glances towards Fubuki.

"Who are you? Did the Fuhrer send you?" asked the nearest soldier.

"No," said Mavis, "I'm here out of my own free will."

By now, the barricade was completely set up, and there were at least forty soldiers behind it, about half of whom had guns. The rest were armed with an array of objects, from knives, to a stick. Mavis noticed that most of them looked frightened, and were extremely thin. She managed to catch snippets of speech.

"We're surely doomed this time, the Russians won't pull back."

"Aye…"

G4 suddenly perked up, _Threat detected_ , he warned.

Sure enough, four tanks were already rumbling down the other end of the street. A lone German soldier was running in front of it, yelling for help. He was shot in the back, and was ran over by a tank.

Mavis felt her heart thumping. This was it. If she made it out of this battle, she would have the cure, and she would be able to bring Johnny back. It would be a win-win scenario. She just needed to fight her way out of the city.

Mavis concentrated, and before the tanks could fire, she unleashed a torrent of telekinetic shockwaves that sent the tanks flying back, crashing through the building behind them and blowing up.

She turned to Fubuki and G4, "Let's go!" she yelled. Mavis jumped over the barricade, Fubuki right behind her. G4 activated his rocket propulsion system and flew over the streets, launching missiles at the the Russian infantry who were trying to stop them. As Mavis ran closer to the wreckage of the tanks she had just destroyed, she noticed Russian machine gun nests that were set up on the other side of the corner. Without hesitation, she turned to mist, flying through the streets while killing dozens of enemy infantry on the way. She was only stopped by a line of Russian machine guns, which opened fire right on time, forcing Mavis behind a wall. G4 launched another dozen missiles, which collided into the Russian lines, incinerating everyone and everything. Three tanks behind the barricade opened fire, but Mavis simply deflected all three of them, not giving the tanks a chance to respond before Fubuki melted them with her fire.

Behind them, the Germans were watching in awe.

"She's done it! She's broken through the enemy lines! I don't believe it!"

"Rubbish, how could a woman do such things?"

"I swear, look at it yourself!"

The soldiers began rallying, charging behind Mavis, Fubuki, and G4, fighting their way across Stalingrad and reclaiming previously-lost land. The Germans without weapons grabbed soviet rifles and began to fire as well.

Eventually, they managed to push the last Russians out of Stalingrad, where they fled to the encampments that surrounded the city. There, most of the Germans stopped fighting, already tired.

Mavis needed the surrounding encampments destroyed as well. "G4, blow some of those tents up, will you?" she asked.

G4 looked down at her. _As you wish_ , he said in his usual robotic voice. His missile pods opened up, and dozens of missile launched out of it. Unlike what he usually did, however, he kept on firing for a full minute. There were flashes of light, explosions, and the sound of Russians screaming. But when the smoke cleared, there was nothing left.

G4's missile pods retracted into his back. Threats eliminated, he said.

There was a moment of shocked silence, then the Germans began to yell in triumph, pumping their fists into the air. The next thing Mavis knew, she was shaking the hands of every German soldier, being thanked, having blessings given to her. She was treated like a celebrity. Fubuki and G4 were also being treated the same way. Mavis noticed that alot of the soldiers were trying to get particularly close to Fubuki, but retreated every time her hands ignited.

Mavis needed to get going. She signalled to Fubuki, who nodded and began to head her way. G4 turned into a metal ring, which Mavis levitated over the ground, but before she could leave-

"HALT RIGHT THERE!"

Mavis turned around to see a German officer pointing a gun at her.

"I just received a letter from the Fuhrer himself, warning us to look out against two females, and a robot. He also sent photos, look for yourself."

He held out a picture. Sure enough, that was definitely Mavis. Mavis began to slowly back up. This was not going to end up good for her.

"That's bullshit," said one of the soldiers, "This woman helped us drive the Russians out of Stalingrad. Now you expect us to arrest them?"

"It is by direct order of the Fuhrer," said the officer, "Any good soldier would know that orders are orders. Especially if it comes from the Fuhrer."

"I do not approve of this!" yelled one soldier, "I'm with the woman. She is the one who helped us, she is the reason we're still alive!"

"Aye!" yelled another soldier.

Fubuki felt Mavis suddenly grab her hand. She knew what was going to happen next. Mavis was going to try flying.

As the Germans argued, the officer walked up to Mavis with handcuffs, "You'll be coming with me." he said sternly.

Mavis looked at him, "Actually, I won't."

Mavis launched herself up, accelerating as hard as possible. She felt something hit her stomach, and gasped, but still concentrated. She accelerated to Mach 29 in a matter of ten seconds, and was soon flying over the Russian landscape.


	52. Axis Powers

Mavis jumped out of supersonic speeds only after she couldn't handle the pain anymore. It was blinding her. She knew it was a bullet, probably from that pesky officer, but at the same time, she wanted to ignore it, because she needed to get away from the Allied and Axis powers. As she jumped out of supersonic speeds, she immediately collapsed on the grass, blood seeping into the dirt. Slowly but steadily, Mavis telekinetically took the bullet out, then tried to force her wounds to heal telekinetically. Her vision immediately went blurry, tinging the edges of her sight with red. The last thing she remembered was Fubuki helping her into the treeline, where she blacked out under the stars…

Mavis's eyes flew open. Above her, she saw stars light up the sky. Next to her, Fubuki was snoring on a pile of leaves that she must've organized. G4 was in sleep mode a few meters away, and Techno was recharging on the grass next to the fire. Mavis coughed, and looked down at her bullet wound. The bleeding had stopped, but there was still a hole on her waist. Silently, not wanting to wake anyone else up, Mavis put her hand on her waist and concentrated, letting her power flow into her body. Slowly but surely, the bullet wound began to close.

Mavis smiled. Her powers were still growing. Perhaps she did have more to learn. She slowly stood up, not wanting to stress herself. At first, it was painful, but the pain slowly turned into a dull throb, and Mavis was soon enough able to walk around. She took a look around, for the first time, and saw that they were at the edge of a forest. In front of her was a hill, and behind her were an endless sea of trees. Mavis walked back to the fire, and opened the bag that Techno had been carrying for her. Inside, was the cure, still filled with golden liquid.

It was the reason she had come here. This vial was the only barrier between herself and suicide. This was the only reason she didn't give up on life. Or was it the only reason? Mavis's mind went to Fubuki, who was sleeping behind her at that moment. It was her responsibility to train her, to make sure she would grow strong. Mavis shrugged. _Guess that gives my life some meaning_ , she thought.

Mavis's mind went to Sadovsky, as she remembered what he said to her. _That's my daughter's life you're talking about!_ She stared at the ground sadly, but then quickly regained her composure. It was a necessary loss. Compared to Johnny, Sadovsky's daughter was nothing to her.

"Mavis?"

Mavis swung around, her hands glowing with telekinetic power, but calmed down once she saw it was Fubuki.

"Oh...Fubuki, I'm sorry...did I wake you up?"

Fubuki sat up, "Nah...I couldn't sleep much anyways. Did you just wake up?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "I just woke up. Managed to heal my bullet wound in the process as well. I didn't think telekinesis could actually be used for healing."

Fubuki smiled, "Right…"

There was a silence, which was broken by Fubuki, "So...you travelled back in time to save your husband, Johnny?"

Mavis nodded, getting slightly nostalgic, "Yeah," she murmured, "As family, I do anything I can to protect my loved ones. Even if it means dragging you guys along."

Fubuki sighed, "Don't beat up yourself over this...I prefer it here rather than my own world, anyways."

Mavis looked at her, "Really?" she asked, "and why is that?"

"It's...um…" Fubuki gulped, "My family never really loved me. My brother ran away when he was young, my mother died when I was two years old, and my dad left me in an orphanage."

"Oh...I'm sorry," said Mavis. She never knew what it felt like to have a family that didn't love her. She always had Dracula and Johnny to depend upon.

"The point is," continued Fubuki, "My life really sucked. It can't get any worse, really. I prefer it here, actually doing something active, you know?"

Mavis nodded slowly, "I get your situation," she said, "I mean...I'm doing this all for Johnny, after all. I have nothing without him."

"Tell me about Johnny." said Fubuki.

Mavis's eyes slightly lit up when Fubuki asked this question, "He's...he's the best person in the world. He's nice, and caring, and strong, and patient, and always there to help me, and-"

Mavis stopped talking, turning kind of red. Fubuki noted that her eyes glowed a little brighter when she talked about Johnny.

"You must really love him, to do this much to bring him back." said Fubuki.

Mavis glanced over at her, "I would do anything to bring him back." she said firmly, "anything."

Fubuki paused for a second, "Even if you have to take away the loved ones of others."

Mavis winced, remembering Sadovsky. "I...I told you," she said, "I would do anything to bring Johnny back. I would kill anyone for it. Even if it means killing other families, I would do it without hesitation."

Fubuki was silent for a second, "Anyways…" she murmured, "Want to train? The robots won't wake up to noise."

Mavis nodded, wanting something to distract herself with, "Alright," she said, "Come on, let's go over here...yeah, that's good."

The two of them began sparring on the side of the hill. Fubuki launched everything she had at Mavis, but Mavis deflected them all with ease. Mavis did notice, however, that Fubuki was growing stronger. She could actually feel the force of Fubuki's telekinesis now. Even so, Mavis won every round, not giving Fubuki a chance to win. For two hours, Fubuki and Mavis trained, and at 6:00 am, Techno woke up, whizzing around and making breakfast with a stockpile of squirrels that Mavis had already killed.

As Mavis and Fubuki got settled down, Mavis leaned over to Fubuki, "You're getting stronger, you know that, right?" she asked.

Fubuki nodded, "I think these practice sessions are working...as long as I get stronger, I'll be fine with it."

Mavis nodded, "Alright...I think we can move on to bullet deflection soon."

Fubuki looked up, her eyes wide, "Really?" she asked, "you think I'm skilled enough?"

"You have potential, that's all that matters," said Mavis, "I was weak once, but I got stronger as I fought more. You're the same. In your world, you only fight to climb up society. Here, you fight for real. And now, I think you're ready for bullet deflection."

"Wow…" murmured Fubuki, "Alright...when do we start?"

"Whenever we have free time," said Mavis, "and I don't know when that would be…"

For the next few minutes, the two of them munched down on squirrels, with Mavis teaching Fubuki how to kill squirrels using telekinesis. Fubuki caught on surprisingly quickly, killing two squirrels on her own.

After a while, Mavis turned to Techno, "So...have you ran your scans yet? Do we know where the time portal is? We should probably get back to our time as soon as possible."

Techno nodded, "I have. The portal is located in the North Atlantic, in the middle of the ocean."

"Alright," said Mavis, "So...dang it, we're going to need a ship to get there then."

Techno spoke up, "I do have the location of the _USS Iowa_ , after the Nazis stole it from us. It is located in Hamburg, Germany. It is the only ship that rightfully belongs to us. If you oppose using it, we could always just steal another ship."

Mavis fidgeted her hands uncertainly, "Hmm...yeah, I think our best chance is to go to steal the _USS Iowa_ back…"

"Okay, well in that case, we should get going tomorrow," said Techno, "According to my historical data logs, Hamburg has the lowest amount of security on Sunday, which is tomorrow."

"Alright," said Mavis, "So...how about tomorrow morning, 5:00 am? Think you can set an alarm for that or something?"

"Of course I can," said Techno, "But if you guys are planning on training, then I would suggest doing it in the forest, where you're more concealed from aerial reconnaissance."

Mavis grinned, "Alright, Techno," she said, "Come on, Fubuki, we need to continue training...we can get started on bullet deflection."

Fubuki jumped up eagerly and followed Mavis to a safe distance away from the campsite. For the rest of the day, Fubuki practiced bullet deflection. Mavis started by throwing rocks and sticks at Fubuki, and telling her to deflect those, but then she took out a real gun, loaded with rubber bullets (courtesy of Techno), and began firing those at Fubuki. At first, Fubuki couldn't even come close to deflecting the bullets, but by the end of the day, she had managed to deflect a single bullet away from her stomach.

"I did it!" yelled Fubuki, punching the air, "Ha! I didn't think I would be able to do it!"

Mavis smiled slyly, "Not bad...lets continue."

Fubuki's bullet-deflection became better and better as the afternoon slowly dragged into the night, and by 8:00 pm, they were back at the fire, eating squirrels again.

* * *

The _Bismarck_ , the greatest Nazi warship ever built, was sailing in the North Atlantic, when it began to detect very strange radio signals coming from the middle of the ocean. The captain called in to Adolf Hitler, requesting permission to investigate, which was quickly granted to him. Hitler was always scared of secret allied technology.

The _Bismarck_ switched routes, heading towards the source of the radio frequencies, ordering all main batteries to be at the ready, and putting the entire ship on alert. Whatever this radio signal was, the captain was going to find out.

* * *

The _Yamato_ was the flagship of the Japanese Navy, boasting the biggest guns ever seen to sea. It was known for being the unsinkable ship, the king of all battleships. At the current moment, the _Yamato_ was patrolling the Philippine islands, guarding it from the Allied Forces if they were to strike there in order to obtain the oil reservoirs that were located there.

The _Yamato_ received a transmission from the _Bismarck_ , which told the captain that the _Bismarck_ was going in to investigate a weird radio frequency in the middle of the ocean. As the captain of the _Yamato_ reviewed the radio wave, he agreed that it was a very odd one. It didn't seem to act like a radio wave and yet it was somehow detected on the _Bismarck's_ scanners.

The captain ordered the fleet to continue patrolling the waters, while he made an executive decision to split the _Yamato_ off of the main fleet, and follow _Bismarck_ to the source of the radio waves. According to his navigators, he would be able to reach the source in approximately two days.

The captain of the _Yamato_ sighed. _This better not be boring_ , he thought, as he watched the rest of his fleet slowly vanish from the horizon.

* * *

 _2/4/2018_

 _Data Log: Day 1_

 _Operation Hive Mind is in full operation. America, China, Russia, South Korea, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, and India have all been subjected to its effects. Major resistance fighters in Bhutan, Vietnam, North Korea, Japan, Canada, and Ukraine. We have deployed Airship Fleet 29 to South America in order to enact Hive Mind on the country of Brazil, and from there, invade the rest of the continent. Spy intelligence also reports that Madagascar, Ethiopia, and Yemen have made a major push for nuclear weapons in anticipation of attack. These efforts should be useless if the anti-missile technology that we have been developing is operational by the time they create their missiles._

 _Hive Mind Intel:_

 _Currently, all Hive Mind individuals have been wiped of all emotion, traits, and anything individualistic. We have sent them all to work at mines, factories, and farms, for no pay at all, giving them minimum food and water in order to function at full working capacity. The population of the Hive Mind is projected to exponentially grow, and soon enough we'll have enough workers to satisfy all of our ideas and technological advances. Children have been relocated from school to camps, where they learn how to work and labor at maximum efficiency. They don't need to know anything else for our purposes anyways. So far, we have executed 455,000 people who have opposed or spoken out against this._

 _Information on Vampire:_

 _None_

* * *

 **Week days are starting, so I wont be able to write as much**


	53. Back to the Future

The next day, Mavis woke up to the sound of talking. As she opened her eyes slowly, she saw, in front of her, Fubuki and Techno speaking in low voices. Mavis silently dragged herself up, and reached over, grabbed some sticks and throwing it back into the fire.

Techno saw her and whizzed over, "Miss Dracula, if we are to continue with the plan that we set out yesterday, then we must leave in thirty minutes. I have already cooked some squirrels for you.

Mavis nodded, mumbling, "Thanks." as Techno gave her the squirrels. Nearby, Fubuki was watching Mavis, her eyes glowing a little. "So this is it?" she asked, "we'll be going back to our times?"

"Not necessarily," said Techno, "Since the portal was opened on Earth, it would travel back to Earth, then the portal would reopen on Earth, and you and G4 will be able to return to your world."

Mavis knew what Fubuki was thinking. What would happen after she returned to her world? She would've vanished for at least a month by then. And would she still be Mavis's student? Mavis couldn't teach anything across entire worlds.

Mavis decided to ignore the question, "So after we finish breakfast, we'll be heading straight for Hamburg?" she asked, "I'm assuming that you want me to go supersonic?"

"Well," Fubuki glanced at Techno, "It is our only mode of transportation right now, and it's fast."

"No, it's fine," murmured Mavis, "I was just asking anyways."

The two of them finished breakfast in silence.

"Alright," said Techno before they took off, "Just a small briefing. The port at Hamburg has a garrison of about four thousand soldiers. Yesterday, or at least according to my historical data logs, about a quarter of these soldiers should've been relocated to Normandy."

"Okay," said Mavis, "So...we only have to fight through three thousand soldiers? Sounds alright. We should be able to do that."

Fubuki honestly couldn't tell if this was sarcasm.

"Alright," said Mavis, finishing the last of her squirrel, "so...wanna leave now?"

Techno nodded, "That was my plan at least.". Techno flew into Mavis's pocket, G4 went into compact mode, and Fubuki climbed onto Mavis's back. Mavis concentrated, and blasted off, accelerating to Mach 29 in a matter of seconds.

Soon enough, they were flying over trees, lakes, mountains, and rivers. Mavis, for the first time, was actually excited. Actually happy. She had the cure. She had the thing that could bring Johnny back.

Mavis began pushing her speed, going past Mach 37, flying towards the area where Techno told here Hamburg was. Before she left their campsite, Techno had pointed her in the direction of port city.

Eventually, she sensed the city with her extrasensory perception, about a mile to her left. She immediately shifted directions, and rocketed off towards the port, creating a massive sonic boom that shook the ground.

As Mavis neared the city, she slowed down, creating a bubble of regulated air around her so she could talk. "We're going to drop down right on top of the Iowa." she said to Fubuki, "I'll only drop you off on top of the ship, so when you do drop, be ready to fight!"

Fubuki nodded. Mavis sensed G4 activating his weapons systems, preparing for the battle that was about to come.

Mavis flew around the city, going too fast for the radar systems to track her, but going slow enough for her to make out certain objects and buildings. Techno had told her that the Iowa should be in the port, where all the other ships were.

As Mavis flew towards port, she heard yelling underneath her, as soldiers from the Navy began firing their rifles at them. Mavis immediately located the Iowa, docked right next to another battleship that was nearly as large as the Iowa.

The USS Iowa definitely had people in it. Apart from soldiers, who were now firing up at her, there were what appeared to be investigators and scientist walking around on the deck. Mavis saw some people also working in the bridge.

Mavis dived, landing right on top of the Iowa, dropping off Fubuki and G4. G4 activated full battle mode, spraying the entire area with his massive machine guns, killing pretty much anyone he saw. Fubuki ran over to the railings, where she burnt the ropes that were holding the Iowa to port.

Mavis, after dropping off Fubuki and G4, turned to mist, flying into the bridge and killing everyone in it with a single, savage, telekinetic blast. The bridge looked like a mess. The control panel had been yanked open, and there were open wires and twisted levers everywhere. The Nazis had clearly been trying to gain access to the ship's security codes.

As Mavis cleaned up the area telekinetically, Techno attached himself to the control panel, "Mmm… the Germans really didn't know what they were doing," said Techno, "apart from using 20th century technology to break a 27th century security code, they didn't even use the right wiring methods."

"Just get the ship started." said Mavis impatiently. On deck, Mavis heard more commotion, and saw the barracks at port burst open, dozens of soldiers rushing towards the ship, firing their rifles at the massive bulk of G4.

The doors to the bridge burst open, and Mavis turned around in time to see three soldiers run through. As soon as they saw Mavis, they yelled and fired. Mavis stopped the bullets in midair and blasted the three soldiers overboard.

"Miss Dracula," said Techno, "I'm starting the engines of the ship right now."

The ship began to slowly move forward, accelerating slowly but surely. The doors to the bridge opened again, and this time, Fubuki came through. Outside, G4 stood guard over the bridge. Fubuki looked like a mess. From what Mavis saw, she wasn't wounded, but she had blood and charcoal covering her face and body.

As the ship sped up, Mavis suddenly saw the battleship that was docked right next to the Iowa slowly swivel its cannons towards them.

"Techno, look-"

The battleship fired, hitting the shields of the Iowa at point blank range. The shields flashed blue, then red, completely dissipating.

"Shields at 0%." said the AI on the Iowa, "Activating auxiliary shields. Another direct hit will result in partial destruction."

"Return fire!" yelled Mavis at Techno, "Knock out their guns!"

The guns of the Iowa swiveled towards the other battleship, firing at a much faster pace and at a much more explosive caliber, knocking out 3 of its 4 guns. G4 also opened fire, unleashing a hellstorm of missiles and energy explosives that melted the bridge of the enemy battleship.

But the enemy battleship still had one turret left. It fired, launching a 14-inch shell directly into the base of the bridge. Without a shield to stop it, the damage was at a maximum. The entire ship shook, knocking Mavis and Fubuki off their feet. The Iowa now had a massive hole in the center, and one of its gun turrets were down. But now, the Nazi warship was sinking, posing no threat to the Iowa anymore.

Mavis turned to Techno, "Get us outta here," she said, "and go as fast as possible for the time portal. Anyone who gets in our way gets sunk. No exceptions."

Techno nodded, "Alright, at current pace, we'll be able to reach the time portal in about one day. We have one disabled gun turret, but everything else seems functional.

Mavis nodded, "Alright, full steam ahead then."

* * *

Ernst Lindemann, the captain of the infamous Bismarck, was already beginning to regret his decision to investigate the source of the radio signals. That was, until he received an encrypted transmission from German High Command, telling him that there was a rogue battleship heading straight for his location.

Ernst didn't hesitate. He sent a transmission back, telling high command that he'll see what he can do, and then ordered a full red alert, preparing all of his guns and torpedos for battle.

Nearby, the Yamato was sailing towards the Bismarck's position, and sent a radio transmission to the Bismarck, informing Ernst of his arrival. Ernst explained his situation to the captain of the Yamato, who quickly agreed to accompany him in order to sink the ship. Maybe this would explain the strange radio frequencies that they were getting around the area.

A few hours later, however, Ernst Lindemann spotted something in the distance…

It looked like a ring of blue energy, crackling and sending sparks flying everywhere. It floated above the ocean like a portal, surprisingly creepy in the water.

Ernst immediately phoned in to the captain of the Yamato, Okita Yurisha. With codes, they quickly decided what to do. According to the message from German high command, the rogue battleship was heading towards their position. At their position, there was a strange ring of energy hovering above the ocean. This couldn't be a coincidence…

The two battleship began circling the portal, training their guns on anything that appeared on their radar scopes.

* * *

"Two battleships detected on radar," said the AI, "According to historical data records, and 3D scans of these ships, it is none other than the Yamato and the Bismarck."

"What?" asked Mavis, "I thought you said that the portal was in the middle of the ocean!"

"It is," said Techno, "But clearly, the Japanese and Germans got there first. I would suggest using our long-range missiles in order to destroy their ships. It would be much more efficient than using our main batteries, in which we would have to get closer."

"Are they in range yet?" asked Mavis, "we can't take another hit like the one we got from that German warship."

"Unfortunately, we aren't in range yet. We'll need to travel a little closer for that...ah, there we go."

By now, Mavis could see the two battleships on the horizon. They were big. Possibly even bigger than the Iowa.

"Fire missiles," said Mavis, "keep us on a steady course for the portal while we do that. I don't intend on behind stopped by them."

The USS Iowa sped up, cutting through the water. It launched three missiles, two of which went straight for the yamato, and the other one heading for the Bismarck.

All the missiles collided, sending massive explosions through the two ships. Mavis, with her extrasensory perception, saw the Yamato suddenly train its guns on them. It fired, nine 16-inch shells flying through the air and slamming into the water near the Iowa. Luckily, none of the shots managed to land.

The Bismarck was on fire, and the Yamato had its speed cut by 25%. Still, the threat of being sunk by the two battleships was no less than what it was from the beginning. The Bismarck fired its cannons as well. This time, one shot hit the very front of the Iowa, causing the battleship to shake a little, but not causing serious damage.

"Reload and fire again!" yelled Mavis, "As soon as we get in range, start firing our main batteries as well."

The Iowa fired its main batteries, blowing a hole on the Bismarck where there was once a gun turret. The Yamato fired again, this time one shot hitting the hull, not causing any major damage, but a second shot blew up a second gun turret.

The Bismarck changed routes, breaking from their defensive formation and heading straight for the USS Iowa. The front turret fired this time, launch a shell that collided with the deck, setting the USS Iowa on fire.

"Ship's on fire," said Techno, "Should I-"

"No!" yelled Mavis, "Keep pushing, we need to get through that portal!"

As their ship drew near the Bismarck, Mavis saw the gun turrets slowly rotate to its side, preparing for a fatal broadside barrage.

"Techno, fire missiles! All of them! At the Bismarck!" yelled Mavis, gripping the control panel tightly.

Dozens of missiles launched from the many missile pods on the Iowa. The next thing Mavis knew, there were twenty four tomahawk missiles flying straight for the Bismarck, which quickly turned hard to its side, trying to avoid the missiles.

Out of the 24 missiles that were launched, 20 hit.

There was a bright flash of light, as explosions filled the air. When all the light faded away, the Bismarck was nothing more than a smoking heap of twisted metal.

Surprisingly, it's bridge was still intact, and it was still moving. But apart from that, it was beyond Mavis's worries at that point. She focused her attention on the Yamato.

The Yamato, now understanding the long-range capabilities of the Iowa, also went on the offensive, turning around and sailing straight for them.

"Fire our main cannons," said Mavis, "Target their bridge."

The Iowa's main batteries fired yet again, many of the shells missing, but most of them hitting. They set the Yamato's deck of fire, and knocking out some of their secondary guns, but apart from that, the Yamato's armor seemed to be holding.

G4 suddenly perked up. _Threat within range of missiles_ , he said, _Activating plasma incinerator cannons._

G4 let loose with a barrage of bright blue plasma bursts, each one cutting a hole through the hull as if it were butter, literally melting the Yamato.

* * *

The Yamato's bridge was in absolute chaos. Several of the crew members in it had already died from the explosive power of the enemy battleship, and then there were those stupid bursts of blue light that had cut through the ship.

"Sir, we're receiving extreme engine failure!" yelled one of his commanding officers, "Speed cut by 75%, we're running off of auxiliary power now!"

The enemy ship fired its main cannons again, which flew down and destroyed two of the gun turrets on deck.

The captain turned to the person at the wheel, "Set direct course to coordinates 46.89 87.56," said Okita, "Ramming speed."

* * *

Mavis and was sailing past the wreckage of the Yamato, when suddenly, it changed course. Rather than heading past them, it began heading towards them.

"Um, Techno...what are they doing?" asked Mavis uncertainly, as she watched the Yamato grow closer.

"They are probably trying to ram us in a last-ditch effort to sink us." said Techno.

"WHAT?" yelled Mavis, "Full speed, go!"

By now, they were only a couple hundred meters from the portal. But still, it wasn't enough-

SSszzzzzhhhhhhhh

It was the sound of metal grinding against metal, as the Yamato rammed the back of the Iowa. It cut right through the ship, going halfway through the Iowa before it exploded, causing Mavis and Fubuki to be thrown back to the ground.

Mavis could only think of one thing.

Get up...get up

Mavis dragged herself back up into a standing position, "Techno, keep pushing for the portal!" she yelled, "Come on!"

The ship was losing speed, going slower and slower. Mavis heard planes above her, and looked up in time to see a Nazi plane drop a bomb right on top of the Iowa, blowing up the bridge. G4 activated his anti-aircraft guns, firing.

Mavis looked forward. The portal wasn't even 100 feet away. She turned to Fubuki, "Help me force this thing forward, with telekinesis."

Fubuki stared at her, "Um…"

"Do you want to go back or not?" yelled Mavis, "Come on, help me!"

Fubuki, kind of startled, nodded, "Alright," she said, "Let's go."

Mavis began to pour as much telekinesis into making the ship move as she could. She could also feel Fubuki's assistance. Slowly, the Iowa was dragged forward in the water. Soon enough, the engines stopped completely, and the Iowa was being dragged by only the two of them.

Another bomb exploded on deck. Three torpedos exploded below them. Mavis didn't care. She just needed to go back to her time. She just needed to go back…

A swirl of color and light, as the Iowa entered through the portal, and everything went black.


	54. The Sail back Home

The smell of sea water and the slow rock of the boat was all Mavis needed to wake up. As she slowly opened her eyes, she saw the floor of the bridge of the USS Iowa. As Mavis slowly dragged herself up, her eyes focused, and she saw Techno looking at her in a very concerned way.

"Ugh...Techno….did we go back?" she asked, "I swear, if that portal didn't work, I'm gonna kill something."

"We're back in our current time period," said Techno, "Currently we're drifting in the middle of the Indian Ocean, several hundred miles away from any mainland.

"When did you activate yourself?" asked Mavis.

"About three minutes ago," replied Techno swiftly, "Luckily, too. This ship would have sunk if I didn't repair it for you guys."

Mavis nodded, not really caring. She sat back down, sighing. This was it. She was back in her time. The time she was familiar with. Mavis turned around, and saw Fubuki, silently sleeping on the bridge. Behind her, G4 was in sleep mode. Both of them must've been knocked out as they passed through the portal.

"Why didn't they go back to their world?" asked Mavis, "They didn't start out in this world, did they?"

"The portal reformed in this world," said Techno, "In a different position, obviously. We will be able to bring Fubuki and G4 back to their worlds from there."

Mavis nodded. In reality, she was kind of glad that Fubuki was still there. She could safely consider her a friend by now. Her face slightly fell, as she remembered that in a few days at most, Fubuki would be back in her world.

"Get us headed back to Paradise," said Mavis, "if this ship can even work."

"Luckily, I'm good at repairing stuff," said Techno, "I've got the engines back up to power, so we'll be able to get back to paradise in about a day at full power. The weapons systems are all disabled though, so if we're attacked-"

"G4 can handle it if we're attacked," said Mavis, "he's got enough firepower for that."

It was true. The raw firepower of G4 was more than enough to completely destroy two fully-armored battleships.

"Very well. Setting a direct course to Paradise. We'll be there in a day." said Techno.

* * *

Back in the world of Nareth, Tiberius's kingdom, the population was stirring. It had been almost two weeks since King Tiberius had entered into the portal, and they had received no word on where he was or what his conditions were.

In the capital city, Treshire, demonstrations were popping up. The population wanted a new king, who could rule just as effectively as Tiberius had before he vanished into the portal. Because it was a society based off of physical merit, the uprisings were often violent, and resulted in multiple deaths.

Out of these people, however, one wasn't worried for Tiberius as much as she was worried about her sister.

"Where is she?" she yelled frustratingly, "She's vanished for a full week by now! When she comes back, I'm gonna teach her a lesson about running off again!"

The woman's name was Olyra, one of the two Aeria sisters. Her main worry wasn't on Tiberius, who was her husband, but on her sister, Fubuki.

"Miss Aeria," said one of her automaton guards, "we searched the entire countryside, every city and every cranny and every forest. She isn't to be found."

Olyra's eyes flashed dangerous green. "You're useless!" she yelled, blasting her automaton to shreds with a burst of green fire, "I'm going to consult the seer!" she proclaimed, marching down the steps of her palacade.

The seer was an old lady living in the countryside. She was well-respected, but also very feared. She never came out during the day, instead spending her time shut up in her hut, and came out only once during the night. She was known for answering any question that was given to her, but most people steered clear of her, because sometimes she revealed too much.

Olyra didn't care. She walked straight to the hut, knocking on the door.

"Come in…" she heard an old voice wheeze behind the door.

Olyra opened the door slowly, walking inside. She had only been to this place once before, and the lady had already scared her then. Now, she looked even creeper. The seer's eyes were chalky white, with no pupils. She watched Olyra enter.

"You must have a question for me...like so many others…" she hissed, "Please...grant me a question worthy of my time."

Olyra sat down on one of the chairs, "I came to ask you where my sister is," she said, "she's been gone for over a week. And now that my husband has vanished, I'm starting to worry."

"You seek your sister…" the seer's chalky white eyes suddenly began to glow silver, "let's see….yes….ah, how unfortunate...you won't like this one, no you won't."

The seer gave a wheezy laugh that sent chills down Olyra's spine. She leaned forward, "What is it?" she asked, "Where is she? Tell me!"

"Oh...yes, yes, I see." said the seer, "Your sister...passed through the portal, the very same one which your husband went through! How unfortunate…"

"Is she alive?" asked Olyra, her eyes glowing greener than ever, "Is she okay?"

"She's more than okay…" hissed the seer, "In fact, she's having the time of her life right now. She's allied herself with the one person you should hate…"

"What?" asked Olyra, "Who is it?"

"Her name...is Mavis Dracula…" said the seer, "Your sister, Fubuki, befriended Mavis…."

Olyra let out a hiss under her breath. So her sister had decided to side with foreigners? She would have to teach her a lesson, the hard way…

"Mavis Dracula also happens to be the reason Tiberius is dead…" said the seer, "She killed him. And Fubuki still befriends her."

Olyra turned towards the seer, "Tiberius can't be defeated in combat," she said, "You lie."

"Ah, but I don't!" said the seer jovially, "I tell the truth, Olyra Aeria. When have any of my predictions failed? Your sister...is a traitor!"

Olyra stood there. She could feel the heat already building in her hands, but she quickly turned around before her temper took control of her, "If you're lying," she said, "you're dead."

The seer laughed behind her, "Oh...if only you knew…" she murmured.

* * *

Fubuki woke up halfway to Paradise. As she got up, she rubbed her head groggily. Her vision sharpened, and she saw the USS Iowa, still smoking and burnt, sailing.

Fubuki scrambled up, her hands igniting. Did the Germans take over the ship? Was she being held captive by Nazi soldiers? Where was Mavis? Where was G4?

"Fubuki?"

Fubuki spun around and launched a burst of flame straight at Mavis, who deflected it with a flick of the wrist, but still looked startled.

"Um...that wasn't on purpose was it? You're fine." said Mavis, "We went through the time portal, and we're currently heading back towards the island I told you about."

Fubuki's hands immediately stopped glowing, and she sighed, "I'm sorry, Mavis...I thought the worst happened."

Mavis laughed, "Nah, everything's fine. G4 is still sleeping in the bridge, and Techno's steering the ship. After I go back to Paradise and bring back Johnny, you can go back to your world, and everything will be normal again."

Fubuki stared at the wall. She had been hiding something from Mavis for a long time, without letting her find out about it. Sure, if she returned to her world, everything would go back to normal. But then she wouldn't be able to grow stronger. She would be stuck in the social chain again, unable to move up. And then there was her sister to worry about…

Mavis noticed her face, "You don't seem excited," she commented, "you okay?"

Fubuki sighed, "I didn't exactly...tell you about my entire family."

"What?" asked Mavis, surprised at the random subject, "how does your family have to do with any of this? I thought they were all dead?"

"All but one of them," said Fubuki, "Her name is Olyra...and…"

Fubuki wanted to say I hate her, but she couldn't. Her mouth would not allow her to speak something like that.

Mavis, however, read right through her silence. "You don't like her," she guessed, "she's done something to you, hasn't she?"

Fubuki finally told Mavis, "She's….very controlling," said Fubuki uncertainly, "she hates foreigners...and she always takes advantage of how weak I am. Without her, I would actually be doing so much better."

Mavis silently listened. Fubuki, at first, seemed so similar to her. Now that she had learned about Fubuki's past, she seemed like a polar opposite.

"And...I've never actually had any family to rely on," continued Fubuki, "but after I woke up in this world, after I met you and G4 and Protasov and Techno...I can't just leave you guys."

Mavis had already worked out what Fubuki wanted. "You want to stay." she said.

Fubuki gulped, "Listen, Mavis...in my world, supporting foreigners is punishable by death. I do want to stay here, it's just that I'm scared, and I don't know if you would want that either…"

Mavis looked shocked, "What? You mean you don't know if I would want you to stay with us? Of course I would!"

Fubuki looked surprised, "Really?"

"Yeah, really!" said Mavis. She stood up, "Are you serious, then? About wanting to stay here? You certainly can, if you want."

Fubuki nodded, "Yeah, I've already made up my mind for that."

Mavis was about to reply, when Techno suddenly cut in, "Storm straight ahead, we'll be needing your telekinetic powers, Miss Dracula and Fubuki."

Mavis turned to Fubuki, "Come on," she said, "let's go and save this ship."

Mavis and Fubuki turned to the storm, which was brewing up ahead. Mavis saw lightning and heard thunder roaring, It definitely looked like a terrifying storm. But, as Mavis had found out ages ago, looks can be deceiving.

As the USS Iowa entered the storm, Mavis and Fubuki held the entire ship together with telekinesis, deionizing the air above them to prevent lightning from strike the ship, and telekinetically tearing apart entire waves to prevent them from engulfing them.

Mavis could feel Fubuki's strength, helping stabilize the ship. She had really grown stronger since she began to train with her.

As the two of them forced their way through the storm, Techno gave a report to Mavis, telling her that they were doing well, the ship holding up against the pounding waves. G4 even helped the ship, standing on whichever side of the ship needed more weight in order to balance out the force of the waves.

"Techno, how much more?" yelled Mavis over the sound of the storm after a few hours of rough sailing, "I can't hold this thing forever!"

"Only about ten more minutes," replied Techno, "you're doing alright right now. G4, Starboard side!"

G4 took his cue, rocketing over to the other side of the ship, which quickly prevented it from tilting too far to the left, stabilizing the ship.

For the next ten minutes, the four of them worked together to get through the storm, until finally, they managed to make it through, sailing into the slowly-lowering sun, which was tinging the sky red.

"The storm helped propel us towards Paradise," said Techno, "we're only a few minutes out...ah, there it is, Miss Dracula."

There was no other scene Mavis would've rather seen. The tiny island of Paradise, slowly coming into view, out of the edge of the horizon. Mavis could already feel the warm breeze, and the smell of palm trees from where she was.

Next to her, Fubuki tensed up, her eyes glowing softly, "Is that...the island you always talk about?" she asked, "Paradise?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "it's pretty good, isn't it?"

Fubuki was silent, still watching the island. On Nareth, islands were usually turned into factories or training grounds for soldiers. She had never seen an island in this much beauty ever before. Mavis seemed to understand. She patted Fubuki on the back, "I'm gonna go back into the bridge and talk to Techno about some stuff. Enjoy the view, Fubuki."

Mavis walked back inside.

Fubuki stared at the island, still mesmerized, but was quickly jolted back to reality by the thought of her sister. Olyra...Fubuki would have to tell Mavis the truth about Olyra very soon. She couldn't hide it forever. Her sister would begin looking for her, and if she didn't find her, she would likely consult the seer, and find out the truth about where she was and what she commited…

Fubuki shook her head, heading back into the bridge. She would worry about that later. Right now, she needed to focus on bringing someone back from the dead.

Johnny was coming back to life today.


	55. Back from the Dead

As the USS Iowa slowly drew nearer to the island, Mavis saw the remnants of her destruction. Much of the ice that she had created when she saw Johnny die was still there, but the palm trees and shrubbery were already returning. The sand looked as soft and as friendly as ever. In the corner, the Death's Bane was still there, in serious need of repair.

Mavis could feel her own heart thumping, making her vision go sharp with adrenaline. Why was she acting like this? What made this so exciting? So important?

Mavis opened her bag, and pulled out the vial of Death's Cure that Sadovsky had brewed. The golden liquid inside was still glowing as brightly as ever, and the bottle still felt warm.

Mavis put the vial back into her bag and turned to G4, "Sorry for the detour buddy, you'll be going home in a little bit, after I cure Johnny."

G4 looked down at her, almost surprised, You do not need to feel sorry for me, he said, I'm a robot. I am programmed to have extreme patience.

Mavis smiled slyly. Of course he did.

Mavis turned to Fubuki, "So...you'll be staying with me then, Fubuki."

Fubuki smiled, "Yeah...it'll be nice, having a real family to stick to, you know? It's just…"

Fubuki's mind went back to Olyra, and what she must've been doing at that moment. Mavis had explained to her the time differences when going through the portal. By now, it must've been weeks over weeks for the people in Nareth. Her sister had two missing people in her life: Tiberius and Fubuki. Given that she was always a warrior personality, Fubuki could only guess what she would do…

Mavis continued looking at her, "You're doing it again." she said.

"What?" asked Fubuki, turning back to Mavis, "I'm doing what?"

"Whenever I mention you staying with us, you get all gloomy...are you sure you want to stay? It's your choice, I assure you."

Finally, Fubuki said, "My sister, she's...um….she's Tiberius's wife."

Mavis immediately froze. "What?" she asked, "Olyra?"

"Yeah," said Fubuki, "And...I'm worried...with both me and Tiberius missing, she'll probably go through the portal to find me, and if she does, she'll...probably kill us."

Mavis scoffed. Fubuki was almost taken aback by how little Mavis took of this revelation. "You think Olyra can beat me?" asked Mavis, "Listen, Fubuki, I defeated Tiberius. He's dead! Olyra, if she decides to hunt you down like how Tiberius was trying to hunt me down, will share his fate."

Fubuki sighed, "Yeah...I guess you're right. My sister wouldn't be able to defeat you…"

Mavis hugged Fubuki temporarily, surprising her, "Listen, you're part of our family now. It'll all be good. Olyra won't even be able to find us if we stay on the island, and if she does, she's gonna have to fight her way through Johnny, me, Techno, and Techno's security measures in order to get to you."

Fubuki smiled, "Thanks, Mavis." she murmured.

It was then when Techno cut in, "We're thirty seconds away from docking," he said, "and since our transports were destroyed in the battle, prepare for a swim!"

Mavis didn't even get up. She sighed, "Techno, you're forgetting that we can telekinetically launch ourselves to the island, you know?"

"Oh...right," said Techno, "Sorry, Miss Dracula."

As the USS Iowa dropped anchor, Fubuki grabbed Mavis's arm, bracing for her telekinetic flight, but this time, Mavis didn't let her.

"No," she said, "you're going to have to try flying this time."

Fubuki stared, "You think I'm ready?" she asked, "I don't know…"

"You can do it," insisted Mavis, "I felt how powerful you've become when we were holding out that storm, you can definitely lift yourself and fly by now. Just try, it'll be fun. Watch."

Fubuki watched as Mavis levitated a few feet into the air, hovering over the side of the railing, "Now you try," she said, "Concentrate, and you'll be able to do it."

Fubuki concentrated, pouring in as much telekinetic energy into lifting herself off the ground. At first, she didn't feel anything. Then, she slowly felt herself rising.

Fubuki's heart began thumping. She was flying. Without hesitation, she began to slowly glide over the edge of the ship, keeping herself steady in case she lost control. In front of her, Mavis watched her intensely.

"You alright?" asked Mavis, after Fubuki steadied herself in the air, "you're kind of shaky right now."

Fubuki nodded, not used to the sensation of open flight. Before, she had only been able to levitate a few inches, at most a feet, above the ground. "Yeah….I'm fine, but this is...weird." commented Fubuki, testing her flight out by leaning to the left or to the right.

Mavis nodded, turning back to the island, "Alright, come on, lean forward to fly forward. If you ever feel yourself falling, tell me and I'll help you out a little.". With that, she began to fly towards the island.

Behind Mavis, Fubuki shakily followed her. The sensation was strange, but cool at the same time. As Fubuki slowly made her way towards the shores of the island, she began to feel a stabbing pain in her stomach, as she began to tire from the extended flight.

As the pain began to build, Fubuki gasped, losing control temporarily, and dropping by about five feet. She was now only about 10 feet above the surface of the ocean. Fubuki pushed forward, accelerating until she passed the coral reefs that dotted the area around the island, and finally lost control, dropping to the sand.

As Fubuki scrambled back up, dusting off sand from her black dress, she looked around, expecting Mavis to be nearby, but instead saw her on the other end of the island, staring at the ground while walking back and forth.

Fubuki flew over to Mavis, landing next to her, "What're you doing?" she asked, "where's Johnny?"

Mavis's eyes glowed red temporarily as she used her extrasensory perception to locate the area where she had buried Johnny. She could feel the containment pod, and the exact location of where it was.

"It's right here," she said, pointing to the ground beneath her, "wait…"

Fubuki stepped back as Mavis began to lift tons over tons of sand up, digging a hole into the side of the island. When all the dust and sand cleared, Fubuki saw a metal pod, about five feet underground.

"Is that…" began Fubuki, but she was quickly silenced by Mavis, who without hesitation, had lifted the containment pod out of the hole.

The pod itself must've weighed tons. It looked heavier than a truck, but Mavis lifted it without even putting in any effort. It was a grim reminder to how weak Fubuki still was compared to her teacher.

Mavis dropped the pod onto the sand, calling Techno over, who whizzed in and pressed some buttons and dials on the side of the pod. There was a loud hissing noise, as smoke came out of the edges of the pod entrance, and the doors slid open.

Fubuki glanced in, and for the first time, saw Johnny.

He looked very, very cold. His skin was pale-blue, and there was frost on his hair, but apart from that, he looked the same as when Mavis had left him.

Mavis quickly telekinetically levitated Johnny out, laying him on the grass farther in on the island, and took out the cure.

"So...I just pour this thing into Johnny's mouth?" asked Mavis, turning to Techno.

Techno nodded, "Yes, according to Sadovsky's documents, that is what needs to happen. I can assist you, if you need-"

"No need for that," cut in Mavis, softly opening Johnny's mouth and pouring the golden liquid into it, "I got this."

Fubuki and Mavis anxiously watched, as the vial quickly emptied. There didn't appear to be any visible difference, and Mavis was beginning to really start to worry, when-

"Heartbeat detected," said Techno, "vital organs back in full function. He should wake up any-"

Johnny sat straight up, making Fubuki jump back in surprise. His eyes were wide open. Startlingly human eyes, Fubuki noticed. Johnny looked around, seeing Mavis, Fubuki, and Techno staring at him.

"What the-" Johnny scrambled up, "I...I…" he stared at his own body, feeling his chest, which had now completely healed. He looked back up. "I was dead!"

Mavis flung herself onto Johnny, hugging him so fiercely that Johnny's face began to go white, "You were dead!" wailed Mavis, "you...you're alive now!"

Johnny kissed Mavis, which made Fubuki shift uncomfortably. She would probably have to get used to her teacher being in a romantic relationship with Johnny.

After Johnny and Mavis separated, both of them smiling crazily, Johnny noticed Fubuki, "Hey...who're you?"

Fubuki shakily walked forward, "My name's Fubuki," she said, "and uh...Mavis, we have alot to tell Johnny."

After Mavis and Fubuki filled in Johnny on what happened, telling him how they went through a fabled time portal, took the death's cure, and returned safely, Johnny had already made himself comfortable with the two newcomers. He had slightly recoiled when Fubuki told him that she was actually Tiberius's wife's sister, but still viewed her respectfully. Johnny showed much more interest in G4, and even asked him to do some missile demonstrations for him, in which he laughed as he watched G4 disintegrate a boulder on the island. Mavis noticed that Johnny seemed much more lively than usual, which was, as Techno told her, a side-effect of the cure, and that it should wear off eventually.

"So...Fubuki, you'll be staying with us?" asked Johnny, looking at her, "you sure you want to stay? I mean...I would hate to leave home if I were you."

Fubuki shook her head, "Nah," she murmured, "I've never felt any true form of friendliness from anyone before I was taken through that portal...no, I want to stay here. And anyways, Mavis is my teacher now, and I want to grow stronger…"

Johnny nodded, his eyes going back to the lamb stew which he was eating, "Well...I could go with some additional company," he said, "so...welcome to the family, Fubuki."

Fubuki smiled when she heard Johnny say this. They accepted her so easily. Her mind was jarred back when Techno offered her some lamb stew.

"Oh...thanks, Techno." she said, sipping the soup. It tasted much better than squirrel, and much better than anything she ever had back in her world.

That night, after all the eating and storytelling was done, Johnny turned on the TV, turning to the news channel to see what was going on. According to Techno, it had only been a month since Mavis entered the portal, thanks to the time difference. Mavis was still optimistic about the world and how it was fighting George, but this optimism was instantly crushed.

First of all, there were no English news channels left, according to Techno. The only American channels they could get onto were all blaring a loud, patriotic-sounding band piece, and the only images they saw looked like what Johnny instantly recognized as propaganda.

"What happened here…" murmured Mavis, switching from channel to channel. Each one was the same, blaring music, with a background image showing nukes falling on Africa, "what did George do to this world?"

"According to the intel that I'm picking up," cut in Techno, "George has set up some sort of authoritarian government in the places that he conquered. The only resistance that's still going on is located in Africa, Ukraine, Chile, and Australia."

Mavis glanced at Johnny and Fubuki. "We have to do something," Said Mavis, "we're the only ones who can fight George. We're the only ones who can end him."

Fubuki nodded in agreement. She didn't actually have any motivation for helping the humans, but she did want to grow stronger. Fighting a totalitarian government seemed like a pretty good way to get strength.

Johnny, however, shifted uncomfortably, "Yeah," he said, "I mean, I would love to go for an assassination of George, but there are still many factors that we don't know about. We don't know where he is, what his future plans are, and how much stronger he is than what he was a month ago."

Mavis sighed, "Whatever...we're safe on this island at least… we'll discuss this no further today. Tomorrow, we'll start making plans for what we can do. Techno, have you added rooms for Fubuki and G4?"

Techno whizzed in, "Yes I have," he said proudly, "Fubuki, please follow me…"

Fubuki followed Techno into a room that was on the other end of headquarters. Inside, there was a purple bed, complete with silk drapings and lava lamps. It was beyond Fubuki's expectations. She had never even seen such a room with luxury at this level.

"It's…." Fubuki struggled to find words, "It's amazing!"

Techno bowed proudly, "I made it specifically for you," he said, "I was never exactly good at designing guest rooms, so I thought that using chemically bipolar silk strands and multilinear quantum fibers in your bed sheets would be-"

Techno stopped talking for a second, "My apologies, Fubuki, I'm going off on a tangent again. I should get going."

Fubuki smiled, "It's fine. Thanks for the room, Techno!"

Techno bowed and whizzed out of the room, leaving Fubuki alone in her new home. Fubuki sighed. She would have to get used to such good conditions.

Fubuki sat down on her bed. As soon as her head hit the bed, she fell asleep.

* * *

Olyra had established herself as the Queen of Nareth by the time Fubuki was asleep. She had worked the entire public into a frenzy, telling them what the seer had told her.

Right now, Olyra was sitting at the throne in her royal court, surrounded by oligarchs and politicians who were clamoring over each other, trying to offer strategies on how to approach the situation given by the seer.

"Remember, we do not know for certain if the seer was really telling the truth," said the chief Narethian Strategist, "She could just be an insane woman. How do we know anything?"

"Her predictions have never failed before," said Olyra calmly, "if the seer says that something will happen, it will probably happen. If my sister has truly allied herself with those that would kill Tiberius, then we must take haste immediately."

"Yes, but how?" asked the chief military strategist, "we can't just march our troops through that portal, it doesn't work that way."

"Why not?" asked Olyra, "why can't we just march our troops through the portal? Our entire nation is built upon our military, and yet we refuse to use it!"

"We do not know the strength of these foreigners," said another oligarch, "Attacking directly is an admittedly risky move…"

"Enough."

The entire room grew silent as Olyra slammed his desk with her telekinesis, "I'm sick and tired of this squabbling. Some foreigners have brainwashed my sister, and we're talking about politics here. This is what will happen. We will arm our fleets and troops, and make a full-on invasion of the foreigner's land. We will catch them by surprise and crush them, quickly and decisively. Then I will find my sister, and reeducate her."

The room was silent, each person hanging onto every word that came out of Olyra's mouth. She looked around at them.

"Are we deaf? Alert the generals!"

The oligarchs and politicians began scrambling around, making calls and alerting the Narethian military. Olyra's eyes glowed a little. It had been a long time since she's seen battle. Now, she would be leading the armies of Nareth directly into a foreign world.

No enemy will escape. No enemy will live.


	56. Worlds Collide

The next morning, Mavis woke up to the sound of Johnny snoring next to her. She got up groggily, grinning in spite of herself at the sight of Johnny. Johnny, still alive. Johnny, still breathing. Mavis shook her head. She couldn't get distracted with her accomplishments. She needed to start investigating exactly what was going on in the world at that time.

Mavis dragged herself up, heading into the kitchen. In the corner, G4 was in sleep mode. Techno wasn't in his recharge station, so Mavis made the guess that he would be in his kitchen. Sure enough, Techno was seen cleaning the kitchen after last night's meal. Mavis passed by Techno, without attracting his attention, and went over to check on Fubuki's room, which was on the other end of Headquarters. She was still inside, sleeping lightly.

Mavis hesitated. She didn't want to wake up Fubuki, especially when she was sleeping so soundly. But at the same time, she felt a sense of responsibility. She was the reason Fubuki had decided to stay with her. She was the reason Fubuki was abandoning her past.

Mavis walked forward, shaking Fubuki awake.

"Fubuki...come on….wake up…."

Fubuki's eyes opened slightly, glowing green for a second, before dying down, "Wha…?" she murmured, "Mavis...is there anything wrong?"

"No," said Mavis, "I...uh...well...I thought that I would do some early morning training with you. Come on."

Fubuki's eyes immediately grew wide. She jumped out of bed, following Mavis out of headquarters, back onto the soft sand outside. The sky was still dark, and the water was still illuminated by the bioluminescent bacteria. Fubuki's mouth dropped when she saw the bright blue water. Mavis let her stare for a few moments, before talking.

"Fubuki, face me."

Fubuki turned slowly towards Mavis, her eyes glowing green again. Mavis watched her, smiling a little at how amazed Fubuki was. Fubuki then realized why she was out here.

"So...you said you wanted to do some early morning training?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "I thought that practicing flight and bullet deflection would be useful for you. Both of them are very important abilities, that any psychokinetic should know how to use them."

Fubuki nodded, "Alright," she said, "let's start then."

For the next hour, Mavis drilled Fubuki very hard. She had Fubuki fly ten feet above the ground while deflecting bullets from the rubber bullet gun that Techno had created. She made Fubuki lift dozens of rocks and boulders from the shores, all while levitating above the ground. Eventually, Johnny came out to see what was going on, still looking a little sleepy.

When Mavis saw Johnny come out, she signalled to Fubuki to stop. Johnny walked over, grinning a little, "You're pretty good at combat," he said to Fubuki, "not bad."

Fubuki smiled slightly, "Thanks." she said, "So...uh...do we end here, Mavis?"

Mavis shook her head, "Nah," she said, "Johnny, why don't you spar Fubuki? Use these.". With that, Mavis tore off two branches from a nearby tree and telekinetically whittled them until they were turned into two staffs. She gave Fubuki one, and gave the other to Johnny.

"Alright," said Mavis, "the goal is to get the opponent onto the ground for more than three seconds. Three...two...one...go!"

Fubuki lunged at Johnny, expecting him to be weak at combat, because he was a human, but was quickly surprised. Johnny jumped out of her way, bringing his staff down on Fubuki's head. Fubuki was forced to jump back, and telekinetically shoved Johnny back. Johnny's realizing that staying on the defensive would work because of Fubuki's telekinesis, jumped at Fubuki, thwacking her on the side of the head. Fubuki was knocked to the ground, but jumped back up quickly. She jumped up, this time levitating herself ten feet over Johnny's head, and dropped herself. At the last second, however, Fubuki shoved Johnny back a little with telekinesis, surprising him, and hit him hard with her staff, knocking him into the sand, then forced him to stay down with telekinesis.

Mavis smiled, "Alright, Fubuki," she said, "you win. Let Johnny go now."

Fubuki released Johnny from her telekinetic grasp, and Johnny scrambled back up.

"You're pretty good," grinned Fubuki, as she helped Johnny up, "where did you learn to become so strong? As a human, I mean."

Johnny shrugged, "Being an international terrorist makes you strong," he said, "and anyways...Mavis is always there to beat the crap out of anyone who gets in our way, so it usually doesn't matter anyways."

Mavis was about to respond, when Techno suddenly came out of headquarters.

"Miss Dracula and Master Jonathan," said Techno, "I have some news that concerns you. You should come as well, Fubuki."

Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki quickly followed Techno back down into headquarters. In the living room, Techno had the TV running. It was on some African channel that Mavis didn't recognize.

Techno whizzed over to the TV, and backtracked it, going back a few minutes, before-

 _As the African soldiers on the edge Ethiopia continue to fight on valiantly against the Federation of Unified Nations, what viewers are claiming to be aliens have appeared in Bhutan. These so-called aliens have pushed their way through the entire country of Bhutan, killing men, women, and children alike. There is no evidence that these "aliens' have anything to do with the Federation of Unified Nations, but our military strategists do believe that they are in some way related to the Federation._

Techno paused the video, "Here are some photos that I've stolen from the Federation, of these aliens." he said, pressing a few buttons on the TV. Images began to go through the TV, showing the aliens, captured through photograph.

Fubuki immediately recognized it. There were massive walkers, speedbikes, gargantuan warships that would've made George's airships look like legos. Next to her, Fubuki felt Mavis and Johnny also shift uncomfortably.

"No way that's George's technology," said Johnny, "even George doesn't have this type of stuff."

Mavis turned to Fubuki, "Is this your world that's invading? Is this...Olyra?"

Fubuki was still watching the images, "Yes...it is definitely my world that's invading. Whether or not it's Olyra who's leading this attack, I don't know."

Johnny sighed, "So...clearly they invaded for a reason. Any idea why?"

"Maybe they got tired of Tiberius not returning, and they began an invasion to find him?" asked Mavis, "I don't know…"

"No," interrupted Fubuki, "No, I think they're invading for the sake of invading. My world's society is very military-based. We conquer lands to take their resources and to enslave people. This is why my world is invading. I think, at least."

"Well...should we do anything?" asked Mavis.

"Of course we have to do something!" exclaimed Johnny, "we can't just let these guys take over Earth. That's not right."

"Alright then," said Mavis, "we can help...we're probably the ones who can fight these guys the best, anyways.

Fubuki nodded, "We should go. Today." she said. She had never felt more certain about anything else. Something about fighting those from her own world held an appeal in her. Something about showing them how she wasn't weak anymore…

Techno cut in, "If you are planning on leaving today, I would like to point out that the aliens are currently pushing through Africa right now. I can repair the _Death's Bane_ in a few hours, and you guys can be on your way by tonight."

Mavis sighed. She didn't like the idea of rushing so hastily into battle. But at the same time, she knew that the longer she waited, the more of the world the aliens would have conquered. Right now, even George was out of her concern. George was miniscule compared to the problem of the aliens, and Olyra.

Mavis nodded, "Get the _Death's Bane_ repaired at ready. Fubuki, you okay with this?"

Fubuki nodded, a little too overenthusiastically, "Of course I am," she said, "I _want_ to fight right now. I want to show them that I'm not weak anymore."

Mavis grinned, "Alright," she said, "Techno, start working."

Techno bowed and whizzed out of headquarters, beginning his repairs on the _Death's Bane_. Mavis turned to Fubuki, "You sure you're okay fighting your own kind? I mean...it's not too late to go, you know."

Fubuki sighed, "I'm fine, Mavis," she said, "honestly, I feel nothing towards my own race...I just want them to see that I'm not as weak as I once was."

"You're not weak," murmured Mavis, "don't say that. You know it isn't true."

Fubuki was about to respond, when a robotic voice suddenly came out of the corner.

 _When will I be returning to my world?_

G4 came lumbering out of the shadows. Mavis looked kind of surprised, but responded swiftly, "You'll be going back to your world this afternoon," she said, "Techno told me that he can make the portal appear anywhere through electromagnetic manipulation, or some other sort of sciencey stuff."

 _Oh_ , said G4 _, okay. I need to go back to my world. I just received an encrypted message from my masters. It is a war message, and I am expected at the front lines of something. However, I can't read the entire message because this island is hindering my sensors._

Mavis glanced at Fubuki, then at Johnny. Nareth decides to invade Earth, then G4 begins to receive messages about fighting in a war? This couldn't be good.

"Um...okay," said Mavis, "sure...you'll be back in Nareth this afternoon, don't worry about it. Techno is more than qualified for this type of thing."

G4 nodded, then retreated back to his corner, activating his sleep mode. After making sure that G4 was sleeping, Mavis turned to Fubuki and Johnny.

"This can't be good," she whispered, "G4 is a robot. He's programmed to follow orders. If he somehow manages to crack the encryption, then he'll receive the message, and we'll have to kill him."

"Or he'll kill us." commented Johnny. Mavis ignored him.

"Well, then what're we waiting for?" asked Fubuki, "we need to kill G4 now. Before he can harm any of us."

Mavis and Johnny both fell silent. Mavis knew that this was the best choice. It was the easiest way, it was the most humane way, and it was the only way that didn't involve fighting G4.

Johnny nodded, "Yeah, I think...I think we should deactivate G4. Techno should be able to do that."

"Should we do that now then?" asked Fubuki, "I mean...G4's so nice…"

"Yeah, doing that right now is probably the best idea," said Mavis, "Techno! Get down here!"

Techno whizzed down into headquarters, "Yes, Miss Dracula?" he asked, "You called me? What do you need?"

Mavis hesitated for a moment, "I...I need you to deactivate G4 for me."

Techno stared. For the first time, Mavis felt surprise in Techno's voice, "Um...okay." he said, whizzing over to G4, "would you like me to disintegrate him afterwards? To destroy the evidence?"

"No!" exclaimed Mavis, "No...don't destroy him, just deactivate him. So he won't be a problem for us…"

Mavis didn't like it, but it was the only option. She wasn't willing to risk keeping G4 activated in case he decided to betray them, and kill the person who she just worked so hard to bring back…

Techno began glowing slightly, "Alright, beginning deactivation process," he said, "And…..deactivation complete."

Sure enough, the red and blue lights that often glowed under the chinks in G4's armor were now completely dead. G4 was deactivated.

Mavis patted G4 on the stomach, "Maybe," she said, "maybe, one day we'll be able to reactivate him safely...but that doesn't matter right now. Techno, get the _Death's Bane_ fueled up. We're heading to Africa tonight."

* * *

Conquering a foreign land was easier than what Olyra thought. She had started in a strange place her omnilingual officers had told her was called "Bhutan", and had easily driven out of the humans that were occupying the area.

Right now, she was leading a platoon of over 9,000 Narethian soldiers over the mountains, marching towards Tibet. There, Olyra would destroy the entire place, drive the humans out, and settle there for shelter.

At the current moment, she wasn't worried about the humans. They had mostly proven themselves to be weak-minded and lacking bravery. Her mechs and walkers easily decimated the enemy soldiers, and their bullets and grenades were laughable compared to the Narethian body armor.

However, she began to focus her attention back on the facts. No matter how weak this world may first appear, Tiberius _did_ die here, according to the seer. It must have at least a few decent warriors.

Whatever. Right now, Olyra's focus was on conquering Tibet, and finding her sister, Fubuki. Anyone who stands in her way will die.


	57. Tibet

George was sitting at his control desk in Federation Headquarters, tapping his fingers nervously. The days have been quite stressful, especially the last three days. What were these aliens doing? Why did they decide to invade?

George had attempted to shut down the portal a while ago, but his scientists had told him that it was impossible. Once the portal opened, it couldn't be shut down. George grit his teeth. He would have to fight the aliens without external support then.

Currently, the aliens were moving quickly through Bhutan, heading straight for Tibet. Once they reached Tibet, the Tibetans would stand no chance. They would be destroyed by the alien's advanced technology. Then the next country that they would be marching into was China.

George began making orders. He commanded fleets one through ten to be moved to the border of Tibet, then deployed 2,000,000 soldiers at china. He would have to stop these aliens before they got too far, no matter how many people he would have to sacrifice.

Apart from the aliens, though, he was actually doing pretty good. His hive mind was working at full capacity, bringing millions and millions of people under his control. His airship fleets had been increased from seventeen to four hundred fleets, and he had begun mass-producing energy swords.

So far, the aliens had only managed to get through Bhutan and were about to invade Tibet. They were probably used to weak-willed soldiers and unorganized troops. But once they reached china, they would be met with a true army.

* * *

That very afternoon, Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki were packing their battle equipment, going back onto the _Death's Bane_. They had already planned out where to drop. According to Techno's intel gathering, Olyra's forces were about thirty miles through the border of Tibet.

As Mavis got onto the _Death's Bane_ , she saw Fubuki nervously tapping her hands, which got her attention.

"Fubuki, you okay?" she asked, sliding into the seat next to her, "you look nervous."

Fubuki laughed a little, "Yeah, well...I'm still not used to battle. Whenever I go into one, I'll probably be nervous. I would bet that you would feel the same way if this was one of the first times you went into battle."

Mavis paused for a moment. Now that she thought about it, she _wasn't_ feeling nervous. At all. Johnny, who was sitting at the front of the ship, seemed completely relaxed as well. She had become too used to fighting by that point.

"Yeah…." murmured Mavis, "you'll get used to it eventually, don't worry. Just make sure you don't die."

Fubuki grinned, "Rule number one of war, don't die."

"Exactly." Mavis patted Fubuki on the back and went back to the cockpit, where Johnny was starting up the engines.

"So, we know where to drop?" asked Mavis, leaning on one side of the railing, "Techno's entered in coordinates?"

"Yeah," said Johnny, punching another button, "It's just that I need to figure out how to….ah, there we go."

With a roar and a light hum, the engines of the _Death's Bane_ activated. The entire plane began to rise, going higher than the clouds. Mavis smiled slightly. She was finally back in the one ship she felt legitimately safe in.

Fubuki walked into the cockpit, sitting down on a third seat at the control panel that Techno had installed for him.

"So...what do we do when we drop down?" she asked, "Do we just start killing as many aliens as we see? Try to drive them back across Bhutan?"

"Pretty much," said Mavis, "remember, we're going to be dropping down at the front, meaning we'll be dropping down with the Tibetan soldiers. Apparently they've set up a defensive barrier about thirty miles away from the border.

"Alright," murmured Fubuki, "sounds like good practice."

Johnny turned back to Fubuki at this, "You really do want to grow stronger, don't you?" he asked, "you know, you'll be able to grow stronger just by going to the battles that we go to. As long as you don't die, it should be fine."

Fubuki grinned, "But I was under the assumption that you were the dead one a few days ago."

Johnny scowled, and turned back to the control panel, "Whatever." he muttered, staring out the cockpit window.

Mavis grinned at Fubuki, who grinned back. This would be a good running joke from now on. As the _Death's Bane_ finally reached maximum height, Johnny decided to sleep, and so did Fubuki and Mavis. They would be needing the energy for the upcoming battle.

A few hours later, as the _Death's Bane_ was rocketing across southern Asia, Techno finally spotted it. A convoy of walkers, speeders, and thousands of troops that had heavy armor on. In the center, where Olyra must've been, was a particularly large walker, boasting a massive incinerator cannon.

"Miss Dracula, Master Jonathan, and Fubuki, please wake up," said Techno, turning on the lights in the cockpit, "We are five minutes away from our location."

It was true. The Tibetan front was only about a mile away from where the aliens were right now, and Techno had planned on dropping them off there.

Fubuki got up first, followed by Mavis, then Johnny. Johnny yawned, grabbing his doom blades, "Ugh...I'm probably rusty at battle...oh wait nevermind, I have my doom blades."

Fubuki could feel her hands grow warm with anticipation. Her heart was pounding, adrenaline was rushing through her veins, and her eyes were glowing bright green. Next to her, Mavis looked perfectly calm, leaning on one side of the railing why looking down at the images of the walkers and soldiers.

"Alright…" said Techno, "We're right above the Tibetan front. Prepare for drop."

Fubuki, Mavis, and Johnny went to the back room, where Johnny grabbed Mavis's hand, preparing for flight. As they waited, Techno made some last minute adjustments, "Alright...dropping in three...two...one...now."

The doors opened, and Fubuki, Mavis, and Johnny were immediately sucked out into the open air.

As Fubuki free-fell, she couldn't help but actually enjoy the thrill of jumping out from a plane. It was amazing. Beneath her, Johnny and Mavis were already rocketing towards the ground.

Fubuki angled herself better, and also rocketed downwards, cutting through the air like a knife, using her telekinesis to guide her. As she fell beneath the 50,000 feet line, she began to see the walkers and the defensive front.

Dozens of tanks, humvees, and soldiers, standing behind a massive trench that they had dug, armed with machine guns, flamethrowers, rifles, and snipers. On the other side, at least twenty massive 40-meter tall walkers were marching towards the defensive line, followed by speeders and dozens of heavily-armored soldiers.

As Fubuki fell beneath the cloudline, she activated her telekinesis, slowing her fall until she was able to drop safely on the ground behind the front.

Underneath her, Johnny and Mavis were already rushing for the front, Johnny drawing his doom blade, which quickly activated into a solid black, lethal-looking energy sword. Mavis's hands were also glowing as they ran towards the commotion.

Sure enough, the battle had already begun. There was yelling, screaming, and explosions, as the walkers opened fire on the trenches, decimating an entire portion of it and probably killing everyone in it.

Mavis sensed that the cannons that the walkers had actually shot projectiles, which she grinned at. That meant that she could use telekinesis to alter their paths.

As the walkers fired again, Mavis redirected two of their shells back at the walkers, blowing up one of them. Mavis saw the confused looks on the Tibetan's faces, as they realized that something had destroyed one of the enemy walkers.

"Come on!" yelled Mavis, "We need to take the offensive!". With that, Mavis jumped over the trench line, along with Johnny, and charged straight at the soldiers, who immediately began firing at them.

Fubuki concentrated, and launched herself up telekinetically, landing right in the middle of a battalion of about forty troops. With a yell, she unleashed a hellstorm of green fire, incinerating everyone in it, and melting the leg of one of the walkers, causing it to fall.

Behind her, Mavis and Johnny were hacking their way through the first battalion, easily disposing of them. Mavis flew up to the control room of one of the walkers, and smashed the cockpit windows, jumping in and killing the pilots.

By now, the enemy soldiers were completely opening fire on them. Mavis was able to easily deflect the bullets telekinetically, and Johnny's doom blades were doing the work for him. Fubuki also began deflecting bullets, finding it surprisingly easy now.

Finally, Mavis broke the stalemate by sending her telekinetic barrier flying outwords, pushing all the enemy soldiers back. She jumped up, followed by Fubuki, and began wreaking havoc in the enemy lines. Johnny, meanwhile, ran over to the nearby walkers, cutting their legs open with his doom blade and causing them to fall.

It was just as Mavis thought that they might actually be able to defeat the entire convoy, when she heard a robotic voice say, _Threat detected_.

She turned around in time to see a robot that looked exactly like G4 open fire on her. She was forced to jump out of the way, sliding behind the leg of a walker to avoid being destroyed.

Fubuki ran forward, jumping behind the robot, and blasting it with fire. After the green fire faded away, however, the robot was still there, even though he had a nasty burn mark on his back.

 _Useless_ , he said, activating his machine guns, and spraying the entire ground around Fubuki. Fubuki was also forced onto the defensive. Luckily, these bullets were larger, making them easier to deflect, but at the same time, it prevented her from moving forward.

Behind that robot, three more robots of the same type marched in, all of them activating their machine guns. Fubuki began to feel her deflection begin to weaken. She wouldn't be able to hold this for long.

Fubuki suddenly felt Mavis behind her, "You move forward, I'll take care of the bullets!" she heard Mavis yell. Fubuki immediately understood what Mavis meant. With a yell, she released the barrier outwards, running forward, while Mavis continued bullet deflection by deflecting the bullets as soon as they exited the barrel, rather than before they hit her.

Fubuki ran forward, burning all of the machine guns with green fire, melting them to ashes. One of the robots suddenly ran forward at Fubuki, an energy blade activating, before Johnny came out of nowhere and chopped off the robot's foot, causing it to fall.

The other robots retracted their destroyed machine guns, and instead activated energy swords, charging the three of them. Mavis was about to prepare for melee combat, when a rocket flew in and blew up the nearest robot.

More rockets flew in, blowing up the enemy robots, and sending them flying back, where they quickly got back up.

Mavis looked behind her, and saw, to her bewilderment, that the Tibetans were charging. They were armed with nothing but AK-47s and bolt-action rifles, but they charged anyways. Their numbers were enough to overwhelm the enemy robots. Whenever one of the robots was about to activate an incinerator cannon, one of the Tibetan soldiers would fire an RPG and knock the robot back yet again.

Mavis took this opportunity to jump out at the robot that was going to fight her, going behind the robot, and telekinetically tearing his head off.

Fubuki followed suit, burning one of the robots so badly his sensors got fried, then chopping off his legs. Johnny assisted in taking down the last one, in which continually stabbed the robot so many times through his armor that the robot eventually gave in, falling down, dead.

By now, the enemy was in a panic. Their walkers were of no use when the soldiers were this close, and their soldiers, although outnumbering the Tibetans, were wary of Mavis's and Fubuki's powers, as well as Johnny's doom blade.

Johnny led the charge this time, cutting through the enemy platoon with ease, the Tibetans following behind him. As he cut through his second platoon, however, Johnny suddenly felt something grab him, and throw him back against the ground.

It was a feeling he's only felt a few times. It was the feeling of telekinesis.

In front of her, a woman with long, solid-black hair rose, holding him down with telekinesis. She looked startlingly similar to...Fubuki. Her eyes were extraordinarily green.

Johnny struggled, but the woman held him there, "What," she hissed, "have you done to my sister, human?"


	58. Times Collide

As Johnny struggled, the woman began to tighten her telekinetic grip on his neck, choking him. Mavis saw what was going on, and immediately knew who the woman was. With a yell, Olyra was knocked back into the leg of a nearby walker. Mavis rocketed over to Johnny, kneeling next to him and making sure he was alright.

Olyra hissed when she saw Mavis, "So...a human with telekinetic powers? I have never seen such an anomaly before."

Olyra was going to attack Mavis, when suddenly, a burst of green fire forced her back. Fubuki landed next to Mavis. Her eyes narrowed with dislike when she saw Olyra. Olyra, however, didn't seem to get it.

"Fubuki!" she yelled, "you've been missing for over two weeks! Get over here, now! These idiots have brainwashed you!"

Fubuki shook her head, "No, Olyra...I chose to stay with them. I have realized many things in life, but if there is one thing that I am certain of…" Fubuki's eyes glowed, "it's that you were a _terrible_ sister."

Olyra hissed, "How _dare_ you!" she screamed, "I took care of you! I pushed you to grow stronger! You are _nothing_ without me!"

Olyra lunged at Fubuki, but Fubuki flew out of the way, hovering twenty feet above the ground. Mavis telekinetically threw Olyra against the ground, pinning her there, but Olyra broke free, activating an energy sword and going after Mavis.

Olyra was indeed very fast. But Mavis was still able to keep up with her speed. The two of them became blurs, fighting their way through the landscape. Around Johnny, Tibetan soldiers began forming a defensive line, digging foxholes to place their machine guns in.

"You will _pay_ for what you did to my sister!" yelled Olyra, stabbing at Mavis yet again. Mavis vanished into mist, reappearing behind her and launching a volley of telekinetic blasts that sent Olyra flying into the ground again. Olyra jumped back up.

"Your sister made the decision herself," said Mavis calmly, "she told me how much you've abused her. How many times she had to cry herself to sleep because of you. She chose the right side."

"She chose the _losing_ side!" screamed Olyra, lunging at Mavis yet again. This time, Mavis was cut in the hip. She let out a gasp of pain, but quickly regained her composure, turning to mist before Olyra could slash at her again.

By now, Johnny had rallied the Tibetan troops, and was in combat with the next platoon of troops. Olyra saw this, and retreated, going back to her platoon to protect it. Mavis watched her grudgingly. She might've been a crazy family member, but she was a good strategist. She knew that if that platoon fell, she would be completely surrounded on all sides.

As Johnny and the Tibetan soldiers were forced into retreat, they ran back to the foxholes that they had dug earlier and began to set up machine gun nests, opening fire at the soldiers, who used their shields to block the immediately noted that the Tibetans stood no chance in the long run, and signalled Johnny to retreat.

Fubuki, who was still blasting any soldier who got near with fire, saw what Johnny and the soldiers were doing, and quickly fell into retreat behind them, wincing at a bullet that she had to take to the chest.

"Come on!" yelled Mavis, dragging a wounded Tibetan soldier behind the first defensive line, "we have to go, Johnny, come on!"

Johnny ran over to where Mavis was, but was forced to deflect a few bullets on the way with his doom blade. In front of him, Fubuki was still covering for the last retreating soldiers, spraying fire everywhere.

Fubuki eventually also fell into retreat along with the other soldiers, running back to where Mavis was, after a rocket flew in and knocked her off her feet. In the platoons, two more war robots marched out, launching missiles at the trenches.

There were screams, as entire portions of the trench were blown into smithereens. The tanks returned fire, but were also eventually destroyed by the robots.

"Come on…" muttered Mavis, "any time around now would be great, Techno…"

Sure enough, the _Death's Bane_ materialized in front of them, spraying missiles and bullets everywhere, completely destroying one robot, before the others began to focus their fire on it, forcing the _Death's Bane_ to concentrate its energy onto the shields.

Johnny ran into the cockpit, frantically flipping switches and pressing buttons. Mavis helped Fubuki inside, telekinetically tearing the bullet out of her bullet wound, and laying her down on a bed in the back of the cockpit.

As the _Death's Bane_ rose out of the carnage, Olyra saw it, and immediately ordered her robots to open fire on it. Dozens of missiles and energy projectiles streamed at the _Death's Bane_. But then it vanished.

The the energy projectiles missed, but one of the missiles hit an unseen thing in the air, exploding. There was a flicker of light, as the _Death's Bane_ temporarily came into view, then vanished. Olyra sighed. The humans who brainwashed her sister would escape this time.

* * *

As the _Death's Bane_ rose over the clouds, part of its right wing damaged from the missile that was launched from one of the robots, Mavis went over to Fubuki, who was breathing hard. The bullets from Nareth looked must nastier than the ones that Mavis was used to. They made the area around the wound look yellow, and had a horrible stench.

When Fubuki saw Mavis approaching her, she shifted, "Don't worry about me…" she murmured, "I'm fine, just a little-"

"You're not fine," cut in Mavis, "let me see the wound."

Fubuki sighed, showing Mavis her bullet wound. It definitely looked bad. Mavis put her hand on the wound, using her telekinesis to slowly heal it. By the time she let go of the wound, it had receded alot, leaving a nasty yellow scar where it once was.

Fubuki looked up at Mavis, amazed, "How did you do that?" she asked, "I...I didn't know you had healing powers!"

"It's not healing powers," said Mavis, smiling a little in spite of herself, "I use telekinesis to manipulate your immune system. I can make it work at super speeds."

"Oh...I see." said Fubuki. She tried to get up, but quickly winced and sat back down. Her bullet wound, although 90% healed, still hurt alot whenever she tried to move.

Mavis put a hand on Fubuki's shoulder, "Listen," she said sternly, "you've fought well today. Do me a favor and rest. We'll be back in Paradise soon."

Fubuki nodded, sitting back down. She rubbed her back uncomfortably, and then sat on her back, causing pain to course through her body temporarily, but quickly relaxing afterwards. Mavis watched her for a little, then nodded, "Get some rest." she said, going back into the cockpit.

As Mavis reentered the cockpit, Johnny waved at her, then refocused himself to the cockpit windows. Mavis slid into the seat next to him.

"So...was it worth it?" she asked.

"Was what worth what?" asked Johnny, not looking up from the display of the control panels.

"Was it worth it? Going to fight the aliens at Tibet?" asked Mavis, telekinetically lifting a pebble off the floor of the cockpit lightly.

"Eh…" Johnny sighed, "I mean, we _do_ know for certain that Olyra, or whatever her name is, is leading the aliens. I mean, that's useful information. And your student's doing well."

Mavis smiled proudly, "Yeah...she's resting in the back…"

Johnny kissed Mavis, taking her by surprise. She had never really kissed Johnny in a while. "You're good at everything you do," said Johnny, after breaking the kiss, "Fubuki's better off with us. You heard what that crazy woman said. She doesn't want anything good to do with Fubuki."

"I'm not saying that there's a problem with Fubuki," murmured Mavis, "it's just that...I don't want to be responsible for another death. Everyone who's interacted with us in any way has died. What if Fubuki's the same?"

Johnny looked back at the display screen, "If Fubuki dies, we'll bring her back." he said.

Mavis glanced up in surprise, "How're we gonna do that?" she asked, "We can't go back in time again…"

"I never said we had to," chuckled Johnny, "don't you understand? There's no problem we can't fix….even death can be conquered. If Fubuki dies, which she won't, then we'll find some way to bring her back."

Mavis leaned against Johnny, "I hope you're right," she murmured, her eyes closing slightly, "I love you, Johnny."

"I love you too." said Johnny softly, tenderly wrapping a blanket around Mavis, "Get some sleep, you'll need it."

With that, Johnny walked to the back, grabbed a blanket for himself, and also fell asleep, with the AI taking over the controls for him.

* * *

George didn't know how to react to what happened in Tibet after his commanding officers had told him that Mavis and Johnny had appeared out of nowhere to help the Tibetans fight off the aliens. Even though the Tibetans had ultimately been defeated in the battle, according to reconnaissance data, Mavis, Johnny, and another unidentified woman had jumped into battle right after it began, drove the aliens back for about an hour, then mysteriously vanished again.

George's reaction wasn't immediate, but he decided to let Mavis and Johnny go off the hook. Even though he _did_ want them to die, it wouldn't harm him to let them and their new accomplice do the heavy lifting.

Still though, he had a problem with the aliens. They were still advancing quickly through the land of Tibet, capturing territory and resources. The Tibetan military had already publicly embraced Mavis and Johnny as military heroes, and have offered refuge for them.

George had almost laughed when he heard that. As if Mavis or Johnny would be dumb enough to take refuge in a country that was bordering his empire, and was also being invaded by bloodthirsty aliens.

But then the last bit of surprising news struck George. It was 4:00 pm in the afternoon, and George was sitting in the control room, monitoring operation hive mind, when a commanding officer suddenly rushed in.

"Sir! We have information that confirms your suspicions about the time portal!"

George immediately sat up from his chair, "And what may that be?" he had asked, his hands tightly clasped together.

The commanding officer handed him a series of photographs, taken from aerial reconnaissance, it showed a massive convoy of ships. But these weren't regular ships. These ships were big...huge, actually.

"Are those...battleships?" asked George, perplexed. Battleships were pretty much extinct in this era, being replaced by the highly versatile and much more useful destroyer.

"Yes sir," said the commanding officer, "It is a battleship. And from our 3D scans, it is none other than the _Tirpitz_ and what appears to be a massive Nazi fleet, along with the _Musashi_ , the second largest japanese warship. It is believed that this time portal dates back to World War 2.

"And where are they heading to now?" asked George, getting frustrated. The last thing he needed was for some idiotic world war 2 warship to interfere with his plans.

"Right now, they're heading towards the northern coast of Germany. Specifically, they're heading towards Hamburg." said the commanding officer, "as Nazis, they probably think that they're empire lasted forever. So they would expect a still-alive Nazi empire."

George sighed, "Sink them. Show no mercy. Kill any survivors."

The commanding officer nodded, "Yes sir!" he said, walking out of the room.

* * *

Adolf Hitler was playing a very risky game here. After crushing Stalin in the battle for Russia, conquering Moscow in just a few weeks, he had turned his attention from the east, to the south, expanding his empire by betraying Mussolini, beheading him, and continuing his blitzkrieg campaign into Africa, crushing British and French forces.

It was going well, until he learned of the loss of the _Yamato_ and the _Bismarck_ to a single battleship. The battleship that the two non-humans had stolen from him. However, the loss didn't come at no profit. German salvage teams brought back pieces of the futuristic technology, and German scientists were able to use it to create more efficient power sources and better weapons. Without the security codes that were probably installed on the ship's main computer, which went through the portal, the task was easy for the German scientists.

After developing energy weapons and plasma cannons, along with long-range missiles, Germany was able to conquer all of Africa in no less than a month, then turned north, taking over Great Britain in a bloody struggle that lasted for a week.

After setting a truce with America to stop the fighting, Hitler had ordered his seventh fleet to go through the portal. Their job was simple. See what was on the other side, and report back immediately.

Well, now he had the fleet's first report. A wooden boat that was sent through the portal, with a letter in it, signed by the captains of every ship that was in the fleet.

 _Mein Fuhrer,_

 _This land that we have stumbled across is a fascinating world. It is exactly like Earth, except much warmer, and much more technologically advanced. The entire place is literally an exact replica of Earth. There is an Africa, an America, a South America, and even a Germany! I am personally under the impression that this portal leads directly to the future. Unrealistic as that may sound, it is supported by what I am seeing right now. What should we do?_

 _Heil Fuhrer,_

 _-Captain Kiesler_

Adolf Hitler took out a pen, and began writing back, outlining his plans.

 _Captain Kiesler,_

 _You are to immediately see if anything is able to be attacked. If this is truly a path to the future, then we can gain technological advances, and we will finally be able to fight North America and conquer it. If there is any place in the world that can be conquered, do not attack, but report back to me immediately. I will be sending the seventh and eighth fleet to assist you if I do decide that attacking is a good option given the circumstances._

 _Heil,_

 _-Adolf Hitler_

* * *

 **Note: Great stuff amirite**


	59. Hive Mind

Mavis was the first to wake up the day after reaching Paradise. As she dragged herself up, the memories came flooding back to her. What happened yesterday.

The fight in Tibet. The aliens that she had fought and almost defeated, if it wasn't for Olyra. Then there was Olyra, who probably wanted to kill Mavis even more than how much Tiberius wanted to kill her. Then there was George to worry about.

When would she finally be able to have a normal life? Mavis didn't know. She didn't exactly care either. She had stopped caring a while ago. It was now just a hypothetical question, completely fantasized about in her mind. Having a normal life was no longer possible.

When Mavis entered the living room, she sensed Fubuki sleeping in her room with her extrasensory perception. According to her extrasensory perception, Fubuki's bullet wound had also healed a decent amount as well.

Mavis smiled. Fubuki. She was actually a source of pride now. Fubuki was something Mavis could point at and say, "See, I've done something in life apart from fighting. I've made Fubuki stronger."

As Mavis sat down in the living room, Techno whizzed over, landing next to her, "Miss Dracula, while you were sleeping last night, I received some news that may concern you."

"What news?" asked Mavis, sitting a little forward, her eyes wide open now. Techno always brought relevant news.

The TV screen on the other end of the room turned on. On it, was a photo of a battleship. A battleship that looked frighteningly familiar. A battleship that looked exactly like-

"Is that the _Yamato_?" asked Mavis, leaning forward to take a better look. It definitely looked similar to the _Yamato_. It had the exact same gun turrets, and was pretty much the same size. However, it did have fewer anti-aircraft guns.

"No," replied Techno, "This is the _Musashi_ , Japanese sister ship of the _Yamato_. It appeared in this world, near the location of where we appeared. It seems as if the portal is still activated in where we left it."

"But...why couldn't we see it when we woke up in this world?" asked Mavis, "It doesn't make any sense."

"That is because we likely drifted for several miles, until we were out of view of the portal," said Techno, "However, for some reason, these germans and japanese sailors aren't getting knocked out when they pass through the portal."

"Germans as well?" asked Mavis, "Who else is with these guys?"

Another photo appeared on the TV screen, showing an entire convoy of warships. The flag of the Third Reich was waving in the wind. One of the ships had a swastika embalmed on the front of it.

"It appears as if the Japanese only supplied one warship," said Techno, "The rest appear to come from Nazi Germany. I do not know what happened back in the time of World War 2, but if the Germans have this much of their navy to spare, it is likely that they actually won the war, or somehow negotiated a truce."

Mavis was silent for a moment, then sighed. "I'll discuss this with Johnny and Fubuki," she muttered, "go make us some breakfast, Techno."

Techno bowed, and left the room, going into the kitchen, cooking breakfast.

Mavis sat down on the couch, thinking silently. She had to make a plan. Something that would get rid of the warships. The last thing she needed was another rogue element. She already had to deal with a totalitarian government and a mob of Mavis-hating aliens. The last thing she needed was a fleet of warships that also had a grudge against her.

Mavis had to destroy them. As soon as possible.

Johnny suddenly poked his head out from their room, "Hey Mavis," he said when he saw her sitting on the couch, and walking over, "what's going on? You alright? You seem kind of anxious."

Mavis shrugged, "Techno just told me some news," she said, "apparently...um...there're some warships that went through the time portal from back in World War II. I dunno what they're doing here, but it can't mean anything good for us."

Johnny sighed and sat down, "You know," he said, "I still find it hard to believe that you time travelled back in time. It seems so…."

Many words came to his mind. Unrealistic. Fake. Surreal.

Mavis smiled, "Don't worry," she said, "there's proof of it now. Techno has it, just ask him. He just showed me the photos that he stole from aerial reconnaissance."

As if it was planned, Techno suddenly whizzed into the room, balancing three bowls of lamb stew, which he expertly placed onto the table. Johnny and Mavis immediately began wolfing down on it, refilling their stomachs after a night of fighting.

As Techno showed Johnny the photos of the German and Japanese attack fleet, Fubuki also came out of her room to eat. She quickly noticed what Johnny was looking at, and turned to Mavis.

"That's not what I think it is, is it?" she asked, her brows furrowed.

Mavis frowned, "It would appear as if Hitler had decided to attack the future with his fleet. Don't ask me how or why, I don't know. Just look at those photos."

Johnny passed the photos to Fubuki, who looked at them intently, her eyes glowing. "This one looks like the _Yamato_ ," she pointed, "I thought we sunk it."

"We did." said Mavis, "but that's not the _Yamato_. It's her sister ship, the _Musashi_."

"I see…" murmured Fubuki. She then set down the photos, "We have to stop them." she said, "they're a danger to everyone right now."

"That's what I was thinking," said Mavis, "Techno, do you know where the fleet is right now?"

Techno turned towards her, "No, but my estimates say that they are probably somewhere in the mid-atlantic. We can search around there for a little, but I have no solid point of where they are right now."

Johnny cut in, "Why don't we just wait for the Germans to do something dumb, like how we've always done?" he asked, "I mean, in the past, if we've ever wanted to find someone, we would just wait for them to do something that exposes their location.

"That is an option I guess," murmured Fubuki, "but you said that they were in the mid-atlantic. Isn't that where we are right now?"

Mavis grew silent. That was not a possibility she had thought about. The possibility of the fleet finding them.

"I...doubt that they'll be able to find us, Fubuki," said Johnny confidently, "I mean, this island's been undiscovered for centuries. What makes you say that they'll be able to find us now?"

"I don't know…" muttered Fubuki, "it's just that...nevermind, I'm getting paranoid. We can go with your plan, Mavis."

Mavis nodded, "Alright then," she said, "we'll chill here then. Techno, keep your ears sharp, your sensors sharper. We want any information that might concern us reported immediately. Got it?"

Techno nodded, "Will do, Miss Dracula." he said proudly.

* * *

General Andre Seitz had been appointed to First General of the Nazi Navy, promoted shortly after the Nazi victory over Italy. After serving some time in the invasion of Great Britain, he was reassigned to what was codenamed as "Operation Timesickle", and was put in command of the Thirteenth Nazi Fleet, the largest naval fleet the Germans had ever commissioned.

After going through the portal, and learning of the world beyond it, a world of futuristic time and setting, Andre had decided to move his fleet East, towards what he predicted was future France. Sure enough, the coastline of France was now visible, off in the distance.

After several hours of sending reconnaissance planes over the countryside, General Andre eventually concluded that it was, indeed France. He hesitated to attack. He knew that Adolf Hitler himself had instructed him to initiate battle if he believed he could win. But could he win? He didn't know how technologically advanced his opponents were.

After a little, Andre began to calm a little. He remembered who he was, and what he was leading. The largest naval fleet ever commissioned. Four aircraft carriers, a dozen battleships, and two dozens destroyers, followed by twenty corvettes. Their fleet was meant to be indestructible.

General Seitz turned to his commanding officer, "Get us closer to the coast," he said, "If they have any military installations, fire at will."

The commanding officer nodded and turned back to the windows of the bridge, yelling out orders. General Seitz phoned in his orders to the rest of the fleet.

"Attack formation, angle seventy six degrees to the left, hard rudder, load all gun turrets." he said calmly. The other captains quickly phoned in as well, saying things such as "all clear", and "all good" to confirm that they had heard General Seitz.

As the massive naval fleet began to head towards the coast, General Seitz peeked through his telescope at the land. It looked like quite a dreadful place, with smokestacks and factories lining the entire area. There was nobody in sight.

This was almost too good. There was a factory, right out there in the open, without anything to defend it. General Seitz quickly ordered the battleships to begin long-range barrage on all non-factory buildings.

The battleships began opening fire, sending massive 14-inch shells crashing into buildings and exploding with deadly force. Buildings crumbled. The streets were soon peppered with dozens of craters. Nothing out in the open could've survived.

After about thirty minutes of barraging the city, General Seitz made the order, "Alright, move in, transport ships at the ready. Have the garrisons prepared."

The fleet also came with three massive transport ships that were in the very center of the fleet. Each ship held four platoons of Nazi soldiers, and one platoon of tanks, along with artillery, guns, and ammunition. They were meant specifically for land battle.

As the ships grew near, General Seitz saw the destruction his ships had brought the countryside. He even saw the workers who were in the factories. The workers looked sickly thin and starved. Some of them had amputated limbs. But something was wrong. Something was awfully wrong.

The workers looked...bored?

He had just subjected them to thirty minutes of shell bombardment, and they looked bored? Maybe the future was a wacky place after all.

When they reached the point to which they had to drop anchor, General Seitz ordered his transports to deploy their troops. Fifty small transport boats were dropped off, and quickly sped towards the land, followed by waterproof tanks.

The soldiers quickly made it onto land, fanning out and going to the first factory to clear it out. A few minutes after landing, however, something happened.

It was as if something in the workers' minds had suddenly made them violent and ruthless. The workers suddenly all simultaneously dropped their tools and slowly turned towards the soldiers, who raised their weapons, glancing at each other nervously.

The humans suddenly screamed, charging forward blindly. Bullets flew towards them, but it was no use. The bullets simply went right through workers, but the body of the target still continued to move forward.

There were yells, as the workers collided with the soldiers, tearing at limbs, eyes, the mouth, anything. They didn't have any organization or coordination at just grabbed, pulled, and bit anything that came into their way.

The tanks also began to open fire, spraying the ground with machine gun fire and blowing up hoards of humans with their main cannon, but even the tanks began to become overwhelmed. The workers were climbing into them, strangling the pilots.

General Seitz, who was on the main flagship, the _Tirpitz_ , was quickly phoned in by the commander who was on the shoreline.

"Yes, Yes, I know that we'll be caught in the blast as well, but if you don't open fire I don't think we'll be here for much longer!" yelled the commanding officer. In the background, General Seitz could hear the screaming and wailing of the workers.

"Very well commander," he said into the phone, "prepare for naval bombardment."

General Seitz turned to his commanding officer, "Begin coastal bombardment," he said, "Maximum caliber. No exceptions."

The massive guns of the _Tirpitz_ and the other battleships quickly swiveled around, and began to fire. Soon enough the entire coast was hidden in a thick screen of smoke and rubble. General Seitz quickly dispatched rescue parties to look for any German survivors.

As General Seitz watched the wounded German soldiers get carried back onto the ship, he could only think of one thing.

What had happened to this world? Was this normal human behavior in the future, or was this a one-time exception? What made them so violent? And most important of all, why were they acting like this?

General Seitz began writing. He had alot to tell Adolf Hitler.


	60. Merciless

Mavis doing combat training with Fubuki, when suddenly Techno whizzed out of headquarters, heading straight for them. Mavis signalled to Fubuki to stop, and turned to Techno.

"What's up?" she asked, panting slightly from her training. Fubuki was getting stronger and stronger by the day, she was able to actually put up a fight by now.

"Well, I was keeping my ears open and my sensors even more open," said Techno, "and I found something that is quite...well...startling. Come on in, I'll show you."

Fubuki and Mavis followed Techno into headquarters, where Techno turned to them, "I was scouring live data archives from the totalitarian government, when I found these images."

On the TV, images appeared, of a ravaged and broken city. It looked like some sort of industrial wasteland. Factories and coal mines were collapsing and smoking. However, out in the distance, Mavis could see none other than the fleet itself.

"What did the fleet do to it?" murmured Mavis, "they did an artillery bombardment, didn't they? Nothing else could've created such destruction."

"It appears as if the Nazi fleet, believing that they could capture the city, did so, but were driven out by the workers, who didn't seem to appreciate their presence." said Techno, turning to some other photos on the TV. The photos showed starving workers, and rib cage thin people meandering around.

"How do those guys even fight?" asked Johnny, who had walked into the room at that moment, "they look as if they're half dead already."

"That," replied Techno, "is exactly the problem. These humans are being controlled by what I believe George calls the 'hive mind', a sort of mind control system that is linked to a central control station. Right now, over 80% of the world's population is under such technology."

"Eighty percent…" murmured Fubuki, "Incredible. But the Germans attacked them? Why did they do this again? It seems kinda illogical to attack a position that they know is more technologically advanced than they are."

"I am under the impression that whoever is commanding the fleet believed that they had the firepower and the numbers to take the city. For good reason as well. They didn't know what Hive Mind was at that time." said Techno.

"Well…" Mavis turned to Johnny and Fubuki, "we have two options now. We can either attack the main hive mind facility, or we could continue our plan on sinking the German fleet. We know where they are now, right?"

"Yes, we do." said Techno, "the fleet is currently stationed off the coast of France, a few miles out of view. I can get you guys there easily. However, I don't know where the hive mind control center is."

"Well…" Johnny cut in, "I mean, the German Fleet is doing nothing but blowing up George's cities for us, right? What harm does it really do us? The Hive Mind is of higher importance right now, I say we go for the control center."

"Yes, but where is it?" asked Mavis, "we don't have much more time until either the aliens or George conquers the entire world. Either way, Hive Mind is going to be a problem."

Johnny sighed, "there's only one way to find out…"

Techno cut in, "In the city that was bombarded by the German fleet, there are several officers there right now inspecting the wreckage that are not under the influence of hive mind. We can go there, and ask them. It would make some sense at least."

"Aren't under the influence of Hive Mind?" asked Mavis, "I thought you said that everyone was under its influence…"

"Only the common people are," replied Techno, "The military officers, soldiers, and commanding officers aren't. We can go to the bombarded city, and figure out where the hive mind control center is easily."

"Sounds good," murmured Fubuki, "I can get stronger through that. Need to sharpen my bullet deflection skills anyways."

Mavis smiled, "Don't worry about your strength, Fubuki," she said, "concentrate on what's truly at stake here. The entire world."

Fubuki nodded, "Right." she said promptly.

Johnny nodded, "Alright, so...when do we leave? We're all rested up."

Mavis glanced at Fubuki, then at Johnny, "Let's go now," she said, "before those officers leave the city. Techno, prep the _Death's Bane_. Maximum speed as well."

Techno nodded, "Of course, Miss Dracula." he said, whizzing out of Headquarters. Soon enough, there were the telltale sounds of Techno working on the _Death's Bane_.

Within a few minutes, Johnny, Mavis, and Fubuki were back on the _Death's Bane_ , preparing to fly to France, where they would finally be able to figure out the location of George's Hive Mind, and destroy it.

As the _Death's Bane_ climbed high into the sky, Fubuki decided to ask the question, "How did you guys get the Death's Bane? It seems far too advanced for even my world."

"The _Death's Bane_ was created by Techno, off of a...B-2 bomber." said Mavis. Time travelled so fast in her eyes, she even had trouble remembering this. "It's the most advanced piece of technology in the world, and also our main source of transportation."

"I see…" murmured Fubuki, turning her attention back to the cockpit window, "So...this is what you do? Save the world, day after day? Sounds pretty awesome if you ask me."

A shadow passed over Mavis's face, and Fubuki immediately regretted these words. Mavis's eyes flickered from blue to solid black for a second, before returning to a dim blue, "It's...a difficult job," murmured Mavis. She sounded as if she was choking, "but if I were to try to find a word to describe it, awesome would not be the word."

Fubuki looked at the ground, "Oh...sorry…" she said, "I didn't want to, you know-"

"No it's fine," cut in Mavis, "not many people would understand our situation anyways. Saving the world, but also convicted terrorists. Everyone hates us, yet we're the ones saving their asses. It really sucks, you know?"

"Yeah...Alright." said Fubuki, "I just thought, you know, maybe you enjoyed your job? In my world, people would fight and die over having a responsibility like your's."

Mavis shook her head, "Anyone who wants this type of life is a fool," she said, "I lost everything because of this. I have nobody but Johnny….and you, I guess."

Fubuki smiled, "Thanks." she murmured.

"Fubuki, promise me something," said Mavis, "promise me that you won't die."

Fubuki stared at her, "What? Of course, I would prefer not to die...but, I mean, it's always a possibility…"

Mavis sighed, "Every single person I've known, including Johnny, has died before. If you die, especially as my student, I...I don't know how I would handle that type of…"

Mavis fell silent. Fubuki patted her on the back, "Don't worry," she said, "I won't die, you don't have to worry about me for that type of stuff."

Mavis smiled, but it looked forced, "I'll go now," she said, "rest a little, we may or may not have a battle ahead of us.". With that, Mavis went into the cockpit.

Johnny glanced over when he saw Mavis enter the cockpit, "Hey." he said, slightly sleepily, "I just set course to the coordinates Techno gave me. We should be on our way now."

Mavis nodded, "Alright." she said, "you should go get some sleep, make the AI take over for you, it should be fine."

Johnny yawned, "Yeah," he said groggily, "I...I do need to get some sleep. Thinking makes me tired. Gimme that blanket."

Mavis telekinetically threw a blanket at Johnny, which he caught, and wrapped around himself, "Enjoy your nap," she said, grabbing another blanket for herself, and falling asleep on the chair next to Johnny."

When Johnny woke up again, Mavis was still asleep, and the plane was still flying. In the back, Johnny saw the outline of Fubuki sleeping on a couch.

Johnny sighed, sitting up, and pressing a few dials and switches on the control panel, turning on the view panel that showed the scene directly below them. Right now, it appeared as if they were above the ocean, about 60,000 feet above.

It was then when Johnny saw it. A close formation of planes, flying in what was unmistakably battle formation.

Johnny immediately woke up Mavis, who looked up at him, "What is it?" she asked groggily, pushing herself up. Johnny pointed to the display, showing Mavis the planes that were flying below them.

Immediately, Mavis's eyes went from tired to very alert. She quickly went to the back to alert Fubuki, and came back with her closely following Mavis.

"Should we blow them outta the sky?" asked Johnny, "according to the AI's data, these planes are Bf 110 fighter planes from the Nazi Luftwaffe. Since they're heading towards the same place as we are, we can safely assume that they're going to attack the officers."

Mavis frustratingly looked at the bombers. She could already see the coast of France ahead of them. "These guys are gonna do nothing but annoy us…." muttered Mavis, "AI, blow them up."

Immediately, two long-range energy blasters popped out of the bottom of the _Death's Bane_ and opened fire, melting thirty two of the forty fighters that were flying below them. The last 8 broke formation, clearly caught by surprise, and began to retreat. The AI continued firing, melting another 7, but Mavis told him to stop firing when only one was left.

"We can let that one live, so he can tell his buddies horror stories." said Mavis, "maybe it'll teach them not to go barging through a time portal without the proper technology."

As the _Death's Bane_ flew towards the shoreline, the AI spoke through the intercom, "Drop off zone is forty five seconds away, please prepare for drop."

Mavis nodded to Johnny and Fubuki, and the three of them headed to the back of the _Death's Bane_. Fubuki's hands were still glowing with anticipation of the possible battle. Maybe one day, she would get used to constant fighting.

As they slowly began to draw near, Fubuki saw below her coral reefs, and bright blue water. It looked like a pretty nice place to stay, if it wasn't for the rubble and the giant craters that dotted the entire city, along with the polluted skies.

"Dropping in five...four...three...two...one...drop initiated." said the AI.

The back doors opened, and Fubuki, Mavis, and Johnny were sucked out into the open air, falling quickly through the air. Johnny flew down below Mavis, where she could easily catch him as a bat. Johnny was almost used to being thrown out of planes by now.

As the three of them rocketed towards the ground, Mavis suddenly began hearing gunshots. She looked down, to see soldiers on top of buildings firing their weapons. Another bullet flew past Mavis, but Fubuki managed to deflect it before it could hit her.

Mavis began deflecting the bullets, making a bubble of safety around herself and Johnny. Behind her, Fubuki was doing alright on her own.

Johnny saw some investigators climbing over the rubble beneath him, and rocketed down to where they were. The investigators didn't even know that he was there. They thought that the gunshots were for some pesky German bombers.

Well, they were wrong. Johnny landed in front of them, carried by Mavis, who rematerialized as a vampire. The investigators froze as Johnny activated his doom blade, pointing it at their necks.

There was suddenly yelling, as soldiers around them began firing, but the bullets were all deflected by Fubuki, who landed behind Mavis.

Mavis's eyes glowed red, "Tell me," she hissed, "where is the hive mind control center? _Tell me_!""

"I...I don't know!" yelled one of the investigators, "we were sent from a separate facility! I'm not lying, look!" he pulled out his ID card, which served no purpose to Mavis. She growled in frustration, signalling Johnny to release them.

"We have to find the commanding officer!" she yelled, "only they would know where the control center is, most of these guys don't know where it would be!"

Johnny nodded, "Use your vampire senses!" he yelled back, "find them!"

Mavis's eyes glowed even brighter, as she used her extrasensory perception to look for the commanding officer…

Forward, turn left, second house, four guards.

Mavis yelled, blasting all the enemy soldiers back into the wall, and sending even more buildings crashing down, "Come on!" she yelled to Johnny and Fubuki, "I know where he is!"

Fubuki and Johnny followed Mavis, climbing over piles of bricks and going through muddy craters, before Mavis turned a sharp left, going into a relatively untouched alleyway, where there were four guards standing over a coffee shop in the back. As soon as the guards saw them, they opened fire.

The soldiers didn't stand a chance. Within two seconds, all four of them were dead, and Mavis was in the coffee shop, holding the commanding officer by the neck.

"Where's the Hive Mind control center?" she hissed at him, "If you don't tell me, I'll snap your neck!"

Mavis's mind control was unstoppable. The commanding officer choked, turning purple, before gasping, "It's...it's in...it's in Paris...just let me….go…."

The commanding officer slumped over, dead. Mavis threw his body across the room mercilessly. She turned around and marched out.

It was then when Mavis heard it. A light whistling. She sensed it as well. Dozens of objects, heading towards the city….what was it?

Then Mavis recognized it. The Germans were beginning an artillery bombardment.


	61. Overpowered

The first thing Mavis thought when she heard the shells whistling towards their position was, _oh crap_. Next thing she knew, a shell had collided with the wall above the coffee shop she was in, sending rubble and stone falling on her.

Luckily, Mavis had a quick enough reaction time to save Fubuki, Johnny, and herself, but had to brace alot, since she was putting alot of weight on her telekinesis very suddenly.

All around the city, the soldiers must've been too focused on looking for Johnny and Mavis to have concentrated on the Germans, who were now firing their shells at the city, demolishing buildings and blowing massive heaves of asphalt into the air.

Soldiers ran around, yelling orders and running towards the commotion. Mavis saw a squad of at least twenty soldiers get blown to bits by a direct naval artillery hit.

Mavis's senses suddenly kicked in, and Mavis spun around, deflecting a shell that would've hit Johnny, and sending it flying towards a building, which promptly collapsed, dust and rubble flying everywhere.

The German warships that were firing were closing in, their guns still blazing. They weren't even close to stopping.

Mavis looked around for the _Death's Bane_ , and finally saw it, flying towards them quickly, decloaking, and hovering above them-

 _BOOOOOM_

A 16-inch shell collided with the _Death's Bane_ 's shields, causing a massive explosion, sending Mavis, Fubuki, and Johnny flying back, sucking the oxygen right out of the air. The _Death's Bane_ could withstand alot, but a 16-inch high-explosive shell was too much. It's shields were immediately reduced to 0%, right as a second shell collided with it directly, exploding and causing it to crash into the ground.

The door of the _Death's Bane_ opened, Techno whizzing out. He quickly joined their group.

"We must make a move!" said Techno, "either we directly attack the Germans, or we find shelter and wait out their bombardment. Right now, we don't have a mode of transportation!"

As if to cue this on, a nearby Humvee packed with soldiers exploded into a massive fireball as a shell hit the ground in front of it, killing everyone in it instantly.

Mavis suddenly spotted a patch of land in the back of the city with her extrasensory perception. It wasn't suffering any damage from the bombardment, probably because it was too far away for the shells to reach them. Mavis immediately began yelling instructions.

"We have to get down to the other end of the city!" she yelled, "if we stay here, we'll eventually get killed by these damn artillery shells!"

Johnny nodded and Fubuki's hands ignited. They were both ready. Mavis turned around, "Come on!" she yelled, "We have to push, now!"

The four of them ran down the streets, buildings and towers exploding all around them. Whenever a soldier got in the way, he would either get burned, thrown, or stabbed. Whenever a tank got into their way, Fubuki would simply melt it, and whenever a shell came near to striking them, which it did alarmingly often, Mavis would simply swat it away with her telekinesis.

When they finally made it down to the other end of the city, panting and out of breath, they saw that many soldiers also had the same idea as they did. All around, were soldiers and tanks, who were camped out in tents or sitting on the side of tanks. They all looked exhausted. But Mavis didn't care. It was either they or them who got to occupy the area. And Mavis didn't want the soldiers to take up the space she needed.

With a yell, all the soldiers were killed, and all the tanks were blasted backwards by a wall of gale-force energy. Windows shatters, walls shook, and a crack went down the streets. Fubuki stared in awe at Mavis, not knowing that she could do such a thing.

"Come on, let's get some shelter," muttered Mavis, dusting herself off, "we can't afford to waste time right now. The Federation soldiers might come back any time around now."

The four of them took shelter inside of an old hotel that was now empty. In the distance, Mavis saw artillery shells exploding in the main city, sending plumes of smoke flying up into the air. Johnny, in the corner, was dragging in tables and a chair. "So...we're safe from their bombardment now?" he asked hopefully.

"We should be…" murmured Mavis. Nearby, an artillery shell collided with a building about a block away. "I _really_ hope so." she corrected.

Fubuki was getting some rest, sitting down on one of the chairs that Johnny had brought in. All around the streets, dead soldiers lay on the ground, not moving. Mavis sighed. She should regret killing them. But for some reason, she didn't…

"We have to figure out what to do," said Fubuki, "we're trapped and we have no way out of this city. How're we gonna get outta here?"

There was silence, before Techno cut in, "Well…" he said quizzically, "there _is_ a way...but it is highly unrealistic, and quite outlandish, actually…"

Mavis looked over at him sharply, "we're no strangers to unrealistic plans," she said, "give us the plan, we'll be able to execute it, no matter what."

She sounded so confident, it kind of surprised herself even. It was only then when Mavis realized how much she's changed since she left Hotel Transylvania.

"Well…" murmured Techno, "there is a submarine docked in the port of this city, according to my intel, and we _can_ use it to sneak past the fleet, but if we're spotted, then there would be a 90% chance of failure and certain death."

"A submarine?" murmured Johnny, "who would dock a submarine here?"

"It's an educational submarine," said Techno, "you know, like a tour attraction. People pay money to go onto it, and 'experience what a submarine feels like' or whatever."

"Right," said Johnny, "and...you know how to work the submarine? Like, how to steer it and control it and whatnot?"

Techno pouted angrily, "Of course I do," he said frustratingly, "I'm technokinetic! How could I not?"

"Okay then," said Johnny, "what other options do we have apart from that then? I was thinking that we could try taking over the nearest battleship and drive it out like the _USS Iowa_."

"That probably won't work." said Mavis, "I mean, think about it. We'll be outnumbered at least thirty to one. Even with Techno at the controls, I dunno if driving out a stolen battleship is a good idea."

"We can go the long way," offered Fubuki, "we can just walk out of this city, and head south into Africa. Then we can steal a ship there and get out. You guys sound as if you're good at stealing these types of things."

"We're naturals at it." scoffed Mavis, "name something, we've probably stolen it."

"Right, well…" Johnny stroked his chin, "What do we do then? We _can_ just wait out the bombardment as well, I guess…"

"Yeah, but if we do that, then this place is gonna be crawling with Federation soldiers." pointed out Mavis, "We should use the bombardment as cover."

"Yeah…" Johnny's eyes went hazy a little, "kinda like that guy from _Hacksaw Ridge_ …"

Mavis punched Johnny in the arm, which made him come back to real life, "Sorry…" he muttered, "have to learn to concentrate more…"

The bombardment stretched onto the night. The Germans were smart, choosing the time when Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki landed to strike. While they were distracting the Federation soldiers, the Germans could move their ships into range and open fire easily. Mavis even admired whoever the commander of the fleet was for his guts.

Eventually, however, more and more federation soldiers began pouring into their street. Soon enough, there were no less than five campsites that had been set up literally right outside the place the four of them were hiding in. Mavis was just worried about being found, and sure enough-

"Hey, what're you doing?"

Mavis whipped her head around in time to see Fubuki burn a Federation soldier, but not before the soldier let loose with a few bullets, which rang out into the air.

Outside, the soldiers in the campsites looked over, grabbing their rifles and machine guns, slowly approaching their area.

"Crap." muttered Fubuki, backing up slightly. That was more noise than what she intended it to be. As the soldiers closed in, one of them threw a grenade through the front door, forcing Johnny and Techno to scramble away. There was an explosion that blew apart the table the four of them were sitting around, but none of them were wounded, Johnny's reaction time being fast enough.

"There's someone in there," said one of the Federation soldiers, "yeah...there's a heat signature in there alright...someone throw another grenade in just to make sure."

Mavis grit her teeth. So they had heat scanners as well? That sucked.

Another grenade went through the door, but this time, Mavis stopped it in midair, hovering it in front of the doorway. She then threw it back.

There was a scream, and an explosion. Fubuki and Johnny jumped out, Johnny stabbing one soldiers through the chest, with Fubuki grabbing another soldier in the face and melting his face off, quite literally.

Mavis followed, deflecting bullets and throwing soldiers against the walls. By now, everyone in the street had heard what was going on, and was rushing straight for them. Mavis saw a group of at least thirty soldiers running at them from the other end of the street, and suddenly had an idea.

Mavis concentrated, grabbing one of the shells from the artillery barrage and throwing it at the crowd of soldiers, either killing them or seriously wounding them.

A tank rolled down, firing, and Johnny jumped behind a pile of rubble to avoid the shot. There was an explosion, and the building they were just hiding in collapsed from the shot that the tank fired.

"Johnny, you okay?" yelled Mavis, running over to check on him. Johnny nodded, blood coming out of his nose, but otherwise, he seemed fine.

"I'm fine," muttered Johnny, "come on, we have alot of people to fight now."

Sure enough, hordes and hoards of soldiers were running at them, firing their weapons, launching rockets. Fubuki was deflecting as much as she could, but even she was beginning to tire.

Mavis joined Fubuki, holding back the massive wave of soldiers. Mavis suddenly felt a bullet go straight through her stomach. She gasped out in pain, but her vampire reflexes kept her going. She looked at the soldiers who were firing at her. The pain was starting to blind her, her vision going white….

She looked at the soldiers again, but instead of seeing the soldier's faces, she saw blank, empty ones. Devoid of feeling. The reason almost everyone she knew was dead…

These soldiers are to blame for those deaths.

With a scream of fury, Mavis unleashed a torrent of wind, energy, and electricity so powerful it flattened every building in a ten-mile radius. The skies turned solid black, and the soldiers were blasted back so hard, it probably killed the majority of them. The tanks were thrown a mile into the air, where they landed elsewhere. The ground around Mavis's feet cracked, and began to glow red. The coast swelled up, a massive, 600-foot wave crashing into the fleet. Even gravity began to grow funky, pebbles and rubble being crushed under heavy pressures.

But that wasn't right. These soldiers were just doing their job. They were innocent…

Immediately, the anger receded. The winds died down. The sky returned to its normal color. Mavis blinked, looking around, and then saw something behind her that made her heart sink.

Johnny.

"Johnny!" yelled Mavis, running over to him. Johnny was laying against the side of a building, his eyes closed. Mavis could barely feel his life force. It was too weak. Dangerously weak. Techno whizzed out, looking at Johnny, inspecting him. He didn't say anything, which couldn't be good.

Mavis turned to Fubuki, "We have to get outta here." she said, "immediately."

Fubuki, who looked frightened at Mavis's power being unleashed in such a way, nodded. "Alright," she said, "and...uh, you better take care of Johnny."

Mavis glared at her, but knew she was right. Without realizing it, she suddenly began crying, making Fubuki even more concerned.

"G-go get something t-to d-drive us out of here." said Mavis, "I'll...I'll take care of Johnny…"

Fubuki nodded, and flew away, looking for a vehicle she could grab.

Mavis ran back to Techno, who was now treating Johnny with medications, "Is he alright?" she asked.

Techno didn't respond at first, which was weird of him, "He's...it was a hard landing, but I'll be able to get him back in about 24 hours...you kind of...overexerted your power, Miss Dracula."

Mavis stared at the ground glumly. Artillery shells continued to land on the city behind her, but for the first time, she didn't care.

She was becoming too powerful.


	62. The Fishing Town

Over a river, past a hill, through flame-stricken streets, across a bridge...eventually, Mavis lost count of what she passed. She was sitting in the back of an all terrain RV that Fubuki had stolen. Right now, Techno was at the wheel, driving the car through the woods.

Fubuki was most worried about Mavis. She didn't eat, didn't drink, and refused to sleep. Sometimes she would just break down into tears randomly. It was so weird to see Mavis like this. She had always been what Fubuki looked up to. She had been Fubuki's inspiration, her goal. But now, she looked so vulnerable.

"Are you sure you don't want a cup of water?" asked Fubuki for about the fifth time, "you...you don't exactly look good."

Mavis shook her head forcefully, "I told you," she said, "I...I don't want anything right now. I'm so stupid…"

Fubuki got up, going into the back of the RV and filling up a glass of water. She shoved it into Mavis's hands, "Well, too bad. You're drinking that, whether you like it or not."

Surprisingly, Mavis decided to drink it, draining the entire thing in one large gulp. After drinking it, she set it down on a nearby counter, before it exploded into several fragments. Fubuki jumped back, but Mavis didn't even wince.

"Sorry...it's...it's the telekinesis...I think I lost some control over it after what I did…"

Fubuki slowly nodded, patting Mavis on the back, "Just don't push yourself, alright?" she said, "remember, without you, we would all be dead."

Mavis didn't respond to this. Her hand found the place where her bullet wound was. Or where it once was. It had, by now, completely healed. Mavis didn't even try to heal it, but it just healed on its own.

Next to Mavis, sitting on the RV's bed, was Johnny. His head had a massive cloth wrapped over it, and Techno had given him several different types of medications and treatments. Right now, Johnny looked peaceful, but that served no comfort to Mavis.

She had nearly killed Johnny.

Fubuki shoved a plate of cookies into Mavis's hands, "Here, eat up." she said, "you need some sugar to energize yourself."

Mavis grabbed the cookies, shoving them all into her mouth and swallowing it all without chewing. It tasted like cardboard.

"So...where are we heading to?" asked Mavis, "we still need a way back to Paradise, or else we won't have a safe haven."

"Techno's set course for a small fishing town in southern France," said Fubuki, "he's bringing us there right now. Apparently they have some big yachts there, and Techno says that he wants to test his powers on one."

Mavis snorted. Techno with just about anything technology-related was pretty scary. Techno with a yacht was even scarier. Mavis turned back to Johnny, gripping his hand tightly, "I lost control, Fubuki...don't do what I did."

Fubuki smiled lightly, "You know, Mavis, you're way too concerned with your powers," she said, "you probably just lost control that one time, alright? Most of the time, you're in control. Don't stress over this type of stuff."

"I could've killed Johnny…" murmured Mavis.

"Listen," Fubuki looked at Mavis right in the eyes, "you didn't kill Johnny, that's what matters. We need to concentrate on surviving right now, or else none of us are gonna live. Get some sleep, we'll have Techno drive the RV."

Mavis sighed and nodded, "Yeah...I guess you're right...I'll get some sleep. You should as well, Fubuki. You look tired."

Mavis wasn't lying. Fubuki looked very, very tired after the fight on the coast of France. Her shirt was stained with blood and her hair was going everywhere.

"I will," said Fubuki, "let's see….alright, here you go."

Fubuki tossed Mavis a blue blanket, which she wrapped snugly around herself, before quickly falling asleep next to Johnny, snoring lightly.

* * *

Olyra had just finished battling off the border of what his officers had told her was a country named China. The defenses in that nation were much stronger than what she was used to, but she managed to push a few miles in nonetheless.

After settling in a conquered city that they had captured, Olyra's officers had informed her that something regarding her sister had appeared online.

When Olyra saw the image, she recognized Fubuki immediately. In the backdrop, there was a city, in flames and ruin. The photo itself was grainy, as if taken from a cell phone, but it was still unmistakable. It was her sister. The photo itself was taken in a faraway land known as "France", whatever that may be.

Olyra sighed. She had to decide what was more important now. The conquering of land for Nareth, or the reeducation of her sister. She knew that she was officially the queen of Nareth, so her loyalties should lie with conquering as much land as possible.

But she could do both. Just that day, five more convoys of Narethian troops had crossed through the border. Olyra had managed to set up a reliable source of communication through the portal, using some ancient magic that her mages told her would work. If Olyra simply handed the task of conquering this world to another person, then personally seeked Fubuki, she could complete both goals…

Olyra's mind was made up. She quickly called over one of her commanding officers, telling him that she was going to hand off command of the army to the officer, and told the officer that she would be going on a "personal mission".

The commanding officer looked surprised, but also honored, "It would be my greatest honor to serve as the General of the Narethian Army." he said, bowing.

Olyra nodded, "Alright," she said, "remember: conquer as much land as possible. Keep communications with me and update me every hour. Got it?"

The commanding officer nodded fervently, "Got it." he said. He seemed kind of fearful. For good reason. Olyra made sure to punish his officers for even the slightest mistake to keep them up to par.

Olyra summoned her personal guard; three of her most elite disciples. They were her best-trained, and most powerful students. Each of them wore thick plated armor, with a metal mask, and carried long, curved blades that glowed slightly silver.

Olyra sat down with her students, and began to talk about her plan, and what she was going to do. They would head down to France, search for her sister, and if they couldn't find her, they would use magic to attempt to find traces of them and track Fubuki to where she currently was.

Then Olyra was kill the two humans, and be done with it.

* * *

Mavis woke up to Techno, who was shaking her, trying to wake her up.

"Ugh...Techno, we there?" asked Mavis, groggily getting up. Her head hurt, and her arms felt tired. Next to Mavis, Fubuki had already gotten up, and was throwing Johnny's two doom blades into the relic bag.

"We are indeed at the French fishing city that I had proposed to go to," said Techno, "here, there are no hive-minded individuals, since government officials are the only ones who live around here. They use droids to do the fishing instead."

"Ah...I see." said Mavis, rubbing her head, "Alright, lets get going then. I'll carry Johnny, you know, with telekinesis."

Fubuki nodded, and opened the door. Outside, it was a little windy, but otherwise fine. Techno whizzed out first, followed by Fubuki, who was followed by Mavis, who carried Johnny's unconscious form.

The fishing town that was ahead of them was quite small. Techno had parked the RV a good distance away from it, to avoid detection, but Mavis could already sense it with her extrasensory perception.

As the three of them walked down to the city, Mavis began to smell...was that….food?

Mavis realized how hungry she was. Refusing to eat nothing but cookies for a full day wasn't doing her any good. Inside the town, Mavis saw massive mansions, with government officials walking around inside. At the dock, massive, cruise-ship sized yachts were docked.

"Those are what we're gonna be stealing?" asked Mavis, incredulous, "but they have no weapons or anything."

"Oh, I can change that." said Techno happily, his display slightly glowing, "you guys always seem to forget that I have technokinesis."

"Right." said Mavis glumly, staring at the ground. Behind her, Johnny followed the three of them, floating three inches over the ground in a slightly creeper manner.

"We have to get to those yachts before someone notices us," said Fubuki, "come on, we can go by roof…"

The Mavis telekinetically lifted up Johnny and Techno with her, and Fubuki jumped up herself. The four of them leapt from roof to roof quite silently. Mavis didn't make any noise at all, stopping herself one inch over the top of the roof to prevent any noise from coming out. Fubuki had gotten much stronger, she was flying with ease by now. Behind them, Johnny was still following Mavis, carried by her telekinetic force.

Finally, they landed on top of the roof of one particularly large mansion right outside the dock. Right next to it, was a decently-sized yacht, which was about a fifth of a cruise ship (Mavis knew since she went on a cruise ship once with Johnny), and also had a helipad in the very back.

"Come on, lets go and take this thing." said Fubuki, jumping down onto the dock, and running over to the docked Yacht.

Mavis jumped down with Fubuki, levitating Johnny behind her, and running over to the Yacht. She jumped up, onto it, scaring the crap out of what must've been a maintenance droid. Before it could do anything, Mavis had grabbed its face and smashed it open.

Fubuki and Techno came up behind her, looking around. Nobody appeared to be on deck. Right now, it was still nighttime, so nobody should be on deck, but Mavis was expecting more resistance…

Whatever.

Mavis jumped up to the bridge, opening the back door and running in. Inside, there was nobody there, but there was a maintenance droid. Mavis ran over to it, grabbing it and tearing off its head.

Behind Mavis, Techno and Fubuki whizzed in. Mavis set Johnny down on a bed at the side of the bridge, and looked at Techno, "Get this thing started, let's get back home." she said.

At that moment, however, Mavis heard someone yell belowdecks, "Oi! Who destroyed this maintenance droid?"

"Hurry, Techno!" said Mavis hurriedly, "before that guy calls soldiers to come investigate!"

"I'll take care of it." said Fubuki, running out of the bridge. A second later, there was a yell below decks, and the sound of glass shattering. A moment later, Fubuki reappeared, holding a broken wine bottle.

"Smashed his head with this," she said, holding up the broken wine bottle, "it seemed to work well."

Mavis smiled, "Nice." she said. The was a whir as the engines of the yacht came to life, and soon enough they were sailing away from port. Behind them, the city didn't even try to resist their escape. This was probably a normal occurrence. Yachts left and yachts would reenter.

Mavis sat down next to Johnny, clutching his hand tightly. Some of the color had come back to his face, but he still looked quite ghostly.

"I could've killed him…" she murmured, still trying to wrap her head around the idea of it, "I can't even control myself."

Fubuki ignored her, opening some pantries in the bridge, pulling out all types of luxury-looking foods. Rare hams, steak, duck, literally everything. It looked as if George had saved all the best for himself and his little government puppets.

Soon enough the yacht was filled with the delicious aroma of crescent, a French delicacy that Mavis had never tried before, but had heard about from Johnny.

After eating, Mavis went back to Johnny's side, feeling his forehead to make sure that his body temperature was alright. Techno whizzed over, checking on Johnny's vitals and heartbeat. After a few minutes, Techno concluded that he was doing fine, and just needed some rest. Apparently, Johnny had suffered a "light concussion".

Mavis sighed with relief when she heard this. That meant that there wasn't any serious damage dealt. A light concussion could easily be fixed, according to what she's heard through the years.

Mavis looked out the bridge windows, at the horizon. She realized just now how much she exposed her position to the rest of the world. If Olyra has any sense of technology, she would be on her tail in no time.


	63. The Yacht

General Seitz was flabbergasted at what had happened. He was so close to winning that battle. A few more miles forward, and he would've been able to strike the back of the city with ease. But something had stopped him. Something had caused an unnaturally large wave to form and crash into the fleet.

Now, he was several nautical miles out of view of the French Port. Most of the battleships made it through, only suffering minor damage that was easily fixed up by their ship mechanics. They lost two destroyers and an entire aircraft carrier through that wave, though, and it frightened General Seitz to think of what other technologies the French were hiding from him.

How powerful was the future? The ability to summon a 600-foot wave? The ability to survive an intense naval bombardment for such a long time? Who were these guys?

General Seitz made a few orders: Full steam back, head 53 degree southeast, towards the coasts of Africa. If his memory served him right, Africa was a relatively poor country back in his day. Maybe it still was today. If it was, then it would be an easy target for his massive warships.

However, what General Seitz did not know, was that he was being spied on from above, through a reconnaissance drone that was following him since he attacked the coastal town in France. What he did not know was that right then, there were a group of government officials debating whether or not to blow him out of the water right then and there.

George was watching the fleet of ships approach the coast of Africa. It had taken his men long enough to get a 4 million dollar spy drone on the fleet, and now, he finally had eyes on it. He quickly asked for an intel report as soon as it came up on the screen.

"Sir, it's heading directly for the African coast," said one of his officers, "it's guns are loaded. We think that they want to attack the African Coastal towns based off the assumption that they are weak and poorly armed."

George sighed and sat back down, "Deploy our naval defenses at the port that they're most likely to land at," he said, "send some Predator Drones to scare them as well, maybe deter them from attacking at all."

"Shouldn't we destroy them, Supreme Leader?" asked one of his officers, "they just demolished an entire mining town. I don't think letting them live is a good idea."

"As long as they aren't attacking us, they can't harm us." said George firmly, "set up heavy naval defenses at the African Coastal Towns, don't let them get close, but don't destroy them as well. If we keep them alive, then they might actually prove useful to us…"

"And what of the southeastern Front?" asked the officer, "we can't fight the aliens forever, our men are starting to starve and die of thirst. We need to deliver supplies to them immediately. Or else we won't be able to hold out."

George waved his hands, "Send in a replacement group of 30,000 soldiers to the southeastern front," he said, "bring food and supplies as well. Have some mechs delivered there too. If we hold the aliens at the border of China, then they'll eventually give up. We have the resource advantage here."

The officer nodded, "Yes sir." he said, "And...what of the vampire and her friends?"

George sighed, leaning back on his chair, "Leave them be," he said dismissively, "I've learned from my predecessor that concerning yourself with things as miniscule as three individuals is something that a ruler should not do."

The officer bowed, "Very well then," he said, "I'll carry out your orders as you've said them."

* * *

Mavis was sitting on the back of the yacht, staring out at the water behind them. The yacht was very luxurious, now that she was on one. Three pools, a game room, two kitchens, and two spas, along with fancy bedrooms made it probably the best conditions she's ever rested in.

Nevertheless, she didn't eat anything, or drink anything, or sleep. In the end, Fubuki had to force a crescant down Mavis's throat, which she decided to swallow just to keep Fubuki from pestering her.

Techno had made a few adjustments to the yacht in case they were discovered, such as adding deck guns and increasing the speed by tenfold. They were whizzing over the surface of the water now, heading back to Paradise.

Behind Mavis, Fubuki came out of the yacht. "Just wanted to check on you," said Fubuki. Mavis noticed how tired she sounded, "you okay? You've been pacing the deck for a long, long time."

Mavis shrugged, "I'm fine," she said, "just worried about Johnny. I was never the best at healing internal wounds, you know…"

Fubuki sighed, "Stop worrying about Johnny, he'll be fine. Right now, George, the German Army, and Olyra are all going after us probably. We'll have to be ready for them if they do appear."

Mavis shook her head, "I don't think the Germans will be able to follow us, we're going to fast," she started, "George doesn't even know that we stole a yacht, nobody even noticed us, and as for Olyra….I guess it's possible, but unlikely."

Fubuki kept silent. Mavis decided to break it, "Fubuki… has your sister always been like that? She kinda seems like a jerk after what I heard her say a few days ago…"

Fubuki nodded, "Pretty much," she said, Mavis noting the contempt in her voice, "she's always so controlling, thinks she's the best warrior in the world. Then again, in my world, that type of mentality is encouraged. I've thought about suicide...or you know, running away from home alot."

Mavis sighed. She didn't know how that felt. Her family had always been nice and caring towards her. But then, Mavis remembered what had happened. Before she left the hotel, she couldn't even use telekinesis, but now…

"You know," said Mavis, "I have a theory."

Fubuki gave her a sideways glance, "and what might that be?" she asked, a little confused from the sudden statement.

"You always talk about wanting to grow stronger, right?" asked Mavis, "you've always wanted to be the strongest, wanted to be at the top."

"Yeah…" Fubuki's eyes narrowed a little. Now that she thought of it, the acquisition of power didn't exactly seem to be so appealing anymore, after going through only two battles, "what of it?"

"If you only train in a dojo, or at training grounds, you'll never grow strong." said Mavis, "but once you enter a battlefield, like a real one, all that training will explode in your face."

Fubuki didn't react to this statement at first, partially because of how much it actually applied to her. She had spent decades training in a dojo in Nareth, wondering why she wasn't growing stronger. She followed all the instructor's directions, but she just didn't grow stronger.

But now, after entering real battle…

Fubuki nodded, "Yeah…" she started, "that makes sense."

Mavis turned back towards the horizon, watching it, "Tell me about Nareth," she said, "I want to hear about it."

"It's-" Fubuki paused, her eyes glowing slightly as she tried to pull back memories, "It's a dreadful place, really. Imagine a factory city, except twenty times worse. We make droids do all the work, obviously, and the rest of us do 24 hour combat training. All of our food tastes like crap, and the water is always muddled with dirt."

Mavis smiled, "Sounds terrible," she said, "but you don't miss it even though it's your home, do you?"

"That's not my home." hissed Fubuki, "it's a place I never want to return to ever again. Under any circumstance. That place is home to all the bad memories in my life."

Just then, Techno's voice came through the intercom, briefly cutting them off, "Miss Dracula and Fubuki, please come up to the bridge immediately."

Mavis glanced at Fubuki, who glanced back. The two of them flew over to the bridge, going through the doors and into the control room, where Techno was sitting next to a display screen that showed a map of the area around them. At the front, the wheel was turning on its own, no doubt a technological feat by Techno. In the corner, Johnny was still lying on the bed silently, his eyes closed peacefully. He looked much better now, but Mavis still felt a pang of guilt when she saw him.

"Ah, there you are," said Techno, whizzing over, "Here, I just wanted to show you this…"

On the display screen, a red dot suddenly appeared. It was moving towards them, a tiny bit slower than them.

"That is a military vessel," said Techno, pointing, "at the current moment, they're way slower than us, and we can escape easily. However, the problem is, we've passed underneath their scopes, and if they have any sense of protocol at all, they would've contacted faster military vessels to chase after us."

"Can't we destroy them?" asked Mavis, "I mean, it's not as if we haven't destroyed warships before, right?"

"This warship is beyond the horizon, out of range of any of our weapons," said Techno, "I mean, unless you want to fly over to that ship, which is possible I guess…"

Mavis shook her head, "Nah," she said, "I don't wanna fight after…"

Mavis's voice faltered as she glanced at Johnny. Fubuki cleared her throat a little, "Um…" she began, "let's uh...just try avoiding them. Can you boost our speed a little more?"

Techno shrugged, "Sure," he said, "the only reason I haven't is because I'm lazy."

Mavis scoffed. "Lazy" was not a word she would use to describe Techno.

"Anyways," said Techno, "right now, we're going at 10x normal speed. I can boost this to 20x, if you would like that. It would certainly prevent the military from reaching us as easily."

"Yeah, do that." said Mavis, turning back towards Johnny, who had stirred a little in his sleep, "Do even more if you can." she added.

Soon enough, their yacht was skipping over the water, going straight for Paradise. Behind them, the military vessel vanished from view, going out the edge of the display screen. A few minutes later, Mavis saw, in the distance, the faintest outline of Paradise.

"There it is," she said, pointing, "that's Paradise."

Techno nodded from the control panel, still using his powers to boost the speed of the engines. Fubuki nervously looked behind the yacht. If the military had somehow gotten a ship fast enough to chase them, then they would pretty much be leading the military straight to Paradise.

Soon enough, they were back on the island. Mavis finally decided to sleep for the first time in 2 days, crashing in the captain's cabin and falling asleep instantly, while Techno and Fubuki kept an eye out for anyone else.

While Mavis was sleeping, Techno made a full-on assessment of the yacht, getting rid of two of the three pools and replacing them with 5-inch deck guns, and installing a railgun at the back of it. Within a few hours, the yacht looked more like a weird luxury battleship than it did a yacht.

After making sure that Techno wouldn't do anything too drastic, Fubuki also fell asleep in one of the bedrooms belowdecks.

* * *

Johnny's eyes slowly began to open, taking in light and color. Johnny blinked. He was sitting in...was this a luxury bed? His head was rested on a soft silk cushion, and next to him was a plate of ham and cheese.

Johnny was in what appeared to be the bridge of some sort of cruise ship. Johnny rubbed his head, getting up and tanking through the pain that shot up his leg as he did this.

"Ugh…." he groaned, as he pulled himself up and dragged himself over to the bridge windows. Outside, he saw what was undoubtedly a yacht. Johnny frowned? A yacht? What had happened since he blacked out?

His memory. He remembered getting thrown towards a wall, and blacking out…

What had thrown him? Was he still safe?

Johnny quickly spotted the island of Paradise, only a few hundred feet away from the yacht. Johnny sighed and plopped down. Whatever had happened, it must've involved Mavis, Fubuki, and Techno stealing a yacht, and coming to Paradise. Only they knew where the island was.

There was a creak, as the door suddenly opened. Johnny swung around, grabbing a kitchen knife from the counter, and turned around to find Techno.

"Oh...Techno...sorry." said Johnny, lowering his blade, "I just woke up."

"Master Jonathan!" said Techno, "thank goodness you're alive. Here, I need to give you some of this…"

Techno quickly injected Johnny with some medications. There was a weird buzzing in the back of Johnny's head, and his vision and hearing instantly cleared.

"Thanks," muttered Johnny, "but what happened? I don't remember much, you know…"

Techno didn't answer at first, whizzing over to the kitchen, where he began making food, "It would appear that Mavis overexerted her powers. You were part of the collateral."

Johnny was silent for a moment, "You mean...Mavis was the one who knocked me out?"

"It would appear that way, yes." replied Techno swiftly, "here, have some food. Right now, Mavis and Fubuki are resting. You musn't blame Mavis for what she did, she was trying to protect you."

Johnny glared at Techno, "Who ever said I was blaming Mavis?" he shot back, "anyways, I'm starving, so-"

"Here you go." Techno shoved three plates filled to the brim with chicken soup, lamb stew, sausages, ham, cheese, pasta, rice, and even wine into his lap, "eat up."

Johnny sighed. He began to eat his food, partly because he didn't want to annoy Techno, and partly because he was legitimately starving, but mostly because he didn't want to think about how Mavis could overexert her power on him.


	64. Trouble in Paris

Johnny was still eating, swallowing plate after plate of pasta. He was surprisingly hungry, having an amazing appetite after not eating anything for two days. As Johnny was about to ask for a fifth plate of pasta, however, Fubuki entered the room.

"You're awake!" she cried, when seeing him, "that's good, now we can finally get back to business."

"Yeah…" Johnny swallowed some more pasta, "I'm all caught up on what happened, thanks to Techno. Where's Mavis though?"

Fubuki's expression immediately became soft, and even a little worried, "She's…" Fubuki paused, not wanting to say anything that went too far, "she's resting right now." she finished. "Listen, I know that Techno probably told you what happened with Mavis, but she was trying to protect all of us when she did that. She just...lost control."

Johnny didn't reply, still wolfing down on every last bit of pasta his eyes laid on. "She was worried sick," continued Fubuki, "she refused to eat anything for a day, and she didn't sleep or anything."

"I'm good with Mavis," cut in Johnny, "I just...want to see her."

"Well...she's resting right now, and I'm very glad that she's doing that. She went a full day and a half without any sleep." said Fubuki, "when she wakes up, you can go and see her."

Johnny sat back down, "So...anything on Olyra or the German Fleet?" he asked, " _something_ must've gone down since I was out."

"Actually, there has been some news regarding the German Fleet," said Techno, "according to some data I stole from international networks, the German Fleet has amassed outside of a coastal town near Africa. I'm not sure why, but they seem to be preparing for an invasion."

"Hmph," Johnny leaned back, "we don't need to worry about that," he said, "all we need to do is let the Germans annoy George. That way, we won't be the primary focus of George anymore."

"Yeah…" murmured Fubuki, "Johnny, maybe you should-"

The door opened, Mavis walking in, drinking a cup of hot chocolate. As soon as her eyes found Johnny's, she froze, then turned around, running out of the bridge.

"Hey...Mavis!" Johnny scrambled up, shoving a fistful of ham into his mouth, running after her, "Mavis! What're you doing?"

Johnny sprinted down the deck stairs. He had never left the yacht, so he was unfamiliar with its rooms and hallways.

"Mavis?"

Johnny ran around, opening doors and glancing over windows. After a while, he finally found his way into the bottom deck, where he saw Mavis, facing the back of the ship, away from him.

"Mavis...what was that for?" asked Johnny, panting a little, "I just woke up, you know. Not good...to...run alot."

Mavis didn't talk much, still staring at the back of the ship, "You know what I did…" she murmured, her voice wavering a little, "I could've killed you. I lost control."

"Mavis…" Johnny walked forward, putting a hand on her shoulder, "it's fine, Fubuki and Techno told me that you were doing it to protect me. Don't beat yourself up over this."

Mavis sighed, "Fubuki and Techno would never say anything bad about me anyways…" she muttered, "I was _so worried_ that I killed you...and even though I didn't, I _could've_ killed you. I'll never forgive myself for that."

Johnny didn't answer at first, "If I died...yeah, that would've sucked." he commented lamely.

Mavis continued staring at the back of the ship.

"Hey, Mavis, look at me." said Johnny softly, "you know...not seeing your face in two days has impaired my brain a little."

Mavis turned around, looking up at Johnny hesitantly, as if expecting him to lash out. She _did_ look bad. Physically, she looked fine, but she looked as if she had been crying for the last two days.

"Mavis...what's happened to you?" murmured Johnny, "come on, you don't have to feel guilty about this."

To make his point a little clearer, Johnny walked forward, wrapping Mavis into a tight embrace. Mavis was caught off guard, but still accepted it, burying her face into Johnny's shoulder.

"I was scared," murmured Mavis, "that you wouldn't….like me anymore…"

Johnny stared at her, "What? Why would I ever think that?" he said, very surprised, "I love you, Mavis, no matter what happens."

Mavis smiled, for the first time in a while. Johnny leaned down, kissing Mavis, hugging her tighter than ever. The two of them silently watched the sunrise, neither of them talking, but enjoying each other's presences.

"Mavis? Johnny?"

Fubuki sprinted down the stairs, her hands glowing. She stopped immediately after seeing what was happening.

"Oh...sorry," said Fubuki, her face turning red as soon as she saw Mavis and Johnny, "I'll...um...leave you now."

She scrambled out of view, and Mavis turned back to Johnny, openly grinning now. She leaned in for a second kiss this time, drawing Johnny in. For the rest of the morning, the two of them stood there, enjoying being back together again.

A few hours afterwards, Fubuki was sitting in the bridge, when Mavis and Johnny walked back in. They both looked quite normal, but turned red when they saw Fubuki watching them.

"What?" asked Mavis, "everything's settled, you don't have to watch us all the time anymore, Fubuki."

Fubuki nodded, telekinetically tossing plates of ham, cheese, duck, and pork over to them, "Techno just told me some stuff that seems important." She said, "uh...dya know what an Eiffel Tower is?"

Mavis smiled, "Yeah, Johnny brought me over to the Eiffel Tower a few years ago. It was pretty awesome."

"Mmmhm," Fubuki ate some more cheese, "well, apparently George is ordering the destruction of the Eiffel Tower in a few days."

Mavis froze. " _What?_ "

Johnny stared at Fubuki, "but...isn't it a symbol of power? Wouldn't destroying it just make George look bad? What motive does he have for it?"

Techno butter into the conversation, "George, well, can't exactly look bad anymore, due to the fact that he's mind controlled 80% of the earth's population. He simply wants to tear it down to remove any symbol of the past. By now, the Empire State Building, the Pyramids of Giza, and the Great Wall have all been taken down. The Eiffel Tower is likely next."

Johnny, surprisingly, didn't react too harshly. He simply plopped down onto a sofa, rubbing his head a little, "So...I mean… what can we do about it? This isn't exactly a situation we can help…"

Fubuki also sat down, not saying anything, but Mavis wasn't too lenient on accepting defeat. By now, she had done so much and has seen so much that she considered it her responsibility to do something about it. But then she thought about Johnny, and how close she went to killing him.

"We can talk about this later," said Mavis resolutely, "Techno, when are they supposed to start taking apart the Tower?"

"Anytime this month," replied Techno swiftly, "I'll tell you if I get any news on it at all."

There was a silence, as the yacht rocked lightly in the waves outside of Paradise, then Mavis stood up, "I'm gonna return to the island. Come on."

Fubuki stood up and followed Mavis out, but Johnny didn't move. He waved his hands a little, "you guys go ahead," he said casually, "I'm gonna stay and help redesign this ship. It looks quite dreadful right now."

Mavis was about to say, _well, we already have to Death's Bane,_ when she realized that it was destroyed over the French factory city. She nodded, "Yeah, go and do that, we'll probably be needing it.". She would have to get used to the lack of aerial flight now.

As Johnny began making more adjustments to the yacht, Mavis and Fubuki went onto the island. Fubuki retired into headquarters, sleeping soundly, while Mavis decided to take a bath in the lake in the center of the island. That bath was pretty awesome.

Meanwhile, Johnny began adding more and more adjustments to the yacht. Soon enough, it had four small deck cannons, a vampiric core engine, three railguns, advanced detection and stealth systems, along with missiles, torpedoes, and an incineration cannon which was based off of G4's weapon systems. Johnny kept the interior of the yacht relatively the same, keeping the luxurious rooms, one of the pools, and one of the spas.

By the time Mavis came out to check on the ship, it looked completely different. The entire thing had been increased in size by two times, and had many more armaments on it. Techno's usefulness never seemed to have a limit.

"Hey," said Johnny, as Mavis clambered back onto the yacht, "you alright?"

Mavis nodded. She looked clean now, her shirt free of blood and grime. "What're you gonna name the ship?" she asked, "every ship needs a name."

"Mmmm…" Johnny stared at the ship, "let's call it...the _Overpowered_." he said, grinning slightly, "after you, obviously."

Mavis blushed, "Stop it," she said, "I'm not _that_ powerful, Tiberius could've killed me. And anyways, I lose control sometimes." Mavis winced as she remembered how she almost killed Johnny.

"You're too humble," muttered Johnny, grabbing her arm, "you're powerful, Mavis. In a good way. There's nothing to be ashamed of in that."

Mavis smiled in spite of herself. Having overwhelming power _did_ feel good sometimes. "Yeah…" she murmured, "you're right. The _Overpowered_ it is then."

The two of them fell silent for a moment, when Mavis decided to speak, "you know...I've been thinking...we can't ignore the Eiffel Tower business."

Johnny didn't seem surprised, "I've also been thinking that." He said, "we can't...we have to assume responsibility for it."

Mavis nodded, "you know, when you fight so much for a good cause, you eventually feel as if you have to intervene whenever something completely irrelevant to yourself shows up."

"Yeah…" Johnny kissed Mavis quickly, "listen, we can talk about the Eiffel Tower tomorrow. Right now, get some rest. Me and Techno are gonna continue redesigning the yacht. It should be ready by tomorrow."

Mavis smiled, "Don't overdo yourself or Techno," she said to him, grinning a little, "We still need both of you guys alive tomorrow. I'll go and try to crack the vampirical on the relic book."

Johnny looked up, "you're still trying to do that?" he asked, surprised, "even after all this time? I thought we gave up on that thing ages ago."

Mavis shrugged, "Maybe, now that I've taken a break from it, I'll be able to crack the code. I think I can do it now…"

Johnny shrugged, "Alright then, go and get 'em." he said, slightly mute.

* * *

Olyra roared with anger. Around her, the city was in flames, the yachts were all smoking piles of rubble. She was surrounded by the dead bodies of government officials, their bodies torn up and their arms and legs mutilated beyond recognition.

"You said _what_?" she hissed at the security officer, who was cowering underneath her. She choked the officer harder, throwing him against a wall, " _tell me_ , where did they go?"

The officer gasped again, "They...they...we think….they stole a yacht…."

"They stole one of your abysmally guarded yachts," seethed Olyra, "and _sailed away unrestricted_?"

"We...didn't think...that anyone...would attack us…."

Olyra threw the man against the nearest wall so hard he spat out blood. She then twisted his neck and killed him instantly.

Behind Olyra, her students were executing random officials, chopping off their heads and burning buildings to the ground. She had traveled so _far_ , but had still missed her chance. Olyra turned around, signalling for her students to return to her.

"Alright." she said, "Set up a radio capture station, I want any news regarding the two humans and Fubuki to be transmitted to me immediately. Without delay."

Her students nodded, taking out mechanical parts from their bags and setting up what appeared to be a tiny radio tower.

Olyra sat there, listening to the radio, when she heard the news about the Eiffel Tower. Whatever it was, it sounded important, since just about every major news station was talking about it. And it was being torn down….

Olyra's mind flew. A symbol of french power? A symbol of democracy? Being torn down? It sounded like the perfect location for a hero to swoop in to save the day. A hero...such as the humans.

Olyra kept silent, but ordered her students to take down the radio capture tower. She began to march towards Paris. If she reached the Eiffel Tower in time, she _would_ be able to finish off the humans.


	65. France

General Seitz was very, _very_ scared. He had just made an attempt to invade the coast of Africa, a place that in his time, was very undeveloped and weak. But the people in this time period seemed to have evolved much more lethal weapons. The general's battered fleet was sailing in the mid-atlantic at the current moment, some of the ships undergoing repairs while they were still safe.

General Seitz began writing an encrypted message to Adolf Hitler, detailing his proposal and what to do in the situation he was currently stuck in.

 _Mein Fuhrer,_

 _It is simply unreasonable to believe that we can hold out against this time on our own. My fleet has been battered into submission every time we attack an area. Even coastal towns, such as that of Africa and South America, are heavily armed and equipped with technologies that we can only dream of. I am waiting on your approval to allow me to withdraw my fleet back through the time portal, so that I can oversee repairs to it and return with a fresh fleet. If this is not possible, then at least send some more warships through the portal to support the effort here._

 _As for the status of the fleet itself, eight of the twelve primary warships have been heavily damaged, one of them have sunk, and the other three are lightly damaged. Out of our many destroyers, only two remain undamaged, and our transports have all been sunk. Rations and supplies are running low, and we are desperate for food and water. Our munitions are running low, and many of our main batteries have shut down due to the enemy weaponry._

 _Heil Fuhrer,_

 _General Seitz_

General Seitz quickly transmitted the encrypted radio message through the portal. If he was lucky, then his encryptions would be so outdated that the people living in this time wouldn't know how to decode it.

General Seitz then ordered full turn 78 degrees to the left for the fleet, and ordered all ships to assume drift. What this meant was that all the ships would pretty much shut off engines, in order to conserve resources, and only use their engines to avoid colliding with each other. General Seitz stared out at the horizon grimly. All he had to do now is survive.

* * *

Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki were sitting around the main table in headquarters. In the corner, G4 stood there, dormant and shut off, and the smell of lamb stew drifted into the room, since Techno was making lamb stew for them at that moment. It had been a full day since they had returned to Paradise, and at the current moment it was in the Afternoon.

"So…." Mavis took out a large sheet of paper which Techno had printed for her. It was a map of the entire world. "We're here," Mavis pointed to a spot in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, far away from any landmass, "and Paris is _here_." she pointed to an area slightly north of the center of France. "I say we attack swiftly, destroy whatever has the capability of destroying the Eiffel Tower, and we'll be good." she said.

"But…" Johnny tilted his head a little, "so you're saying that you want to kill the construction workers? I mean, they're just doing their job."

"They're not using workers," intervened Mavis. She pulled up a second image. This time, it showed a massive _thing_ , carried by a convoy of large walkers. It was what Johnny immediately recognized as a cannon. An incineration cannon. A very _big_ incineration cannon. "This is what we're going to be destroying." said Mavis.

"But why don't they use construction workers?" asked Fubuki, "I mean...it can't be _that_ hard to destroy the Eiffel Tower, can it?"

"My guess is that George wanted to use this incineration cannon on the Eiffel Tower as a symbol of how strong his empire is." said Mavis, "kind of like a public weapons demonstration, to show off your power."

"Ah, I see…" murmured Fubuki, "so...how do we blow it up?"

"Techno can probably do it," interrupted Johnny, "he's good at this type of stuff. We might actually be able to capture the weapon and use it to our own advantage. Who knows?"

"No, I don't think Techno'll be able to do it." sighed Mavis, "I've asked him multiple times, but he keeps telling me that he's too tired after working on the yacht for so long."

Johnny shifted uncomfortably, "Yeah," he muttered, "sorry for that, Mavis."

"No it's fine," said Mavis, "Point is, we're going to have to destroy the weapon. If we do that, then we delay the Eiffel Tower's destruction for at least a couple more years. According to what Techno's told me, it took the Supreme Leader and George a collective seven years to construct the entire thing."

"Alright." said Fubuki promptly, "so...we save the Eiffel Tower, blow up a multitrillion dollar superweapon, and kick the army's ass. I like this plan."

"But what if we fail?" asked Johnny, "I mean...Paris is quite inland. We only have sea transportation, don't we?"

Mavis grinned, "Well...we do have _one_ mode of aerial transportation."

"What?" Johnny looked up, surprised by this announcement, "we do?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "we captured one. A private helicopter on the yacht. Techno's turned the entire thing into a stealth assault helicopter. We can take that inland."

Johnny nodded slowly, "Right." he said a few seconds later.

"And...Mavis," said Fubuki, getting Mavis's attention, "what of Olyra and the other aliens?" she asked, "are they still making progress in Asia?"

Mavis hesitated, "They've...uh….broken through China's defenses, but at a large cost. Right now, George thinks that they're hiding in the mountains in southern China. As for Olyra...I don't know, to be honest. She's been keeping an awfully low profile."

Fubuki nodded, "Alright." she said, "as long as I don't have to deal with my crazy sis, I'll be fine when it comes to Paris."

Mavis smiled, "Alrighty then," she said, "so we're all good on the plan?"

Fubuki and Johnny both nodded, right as Techno whizzed into the room, carrying trays filled to the brim with food. As Johnny and Mavis began to wolf down on the endless piles of roast duck, Fubuki asked the question that Johnny didn't feel like asking.

"So...when are we leaving?" she asked, "Today?"

"I was thinking tomorrow morning." replied Mavis swiftly, "that way, when we reach France, it'll be nighttime, and we'll have the cover of darkness."

Johnny nodded, "Makes sense," he said, "we always strike either in the morning or late at night, so nothing new right now."

The three of them finished their meal quickly after that, and Mavis took Fubuki outside to do combat training again. Fubuki had noticed a significant increase in training. She was now being woken up every morning at 5:00 am, and slept every night at 11:00 pm. When they weren't talking with Johnny or planning or fighting, she was training. And she _was_ getting stronger by now. Mavis was still practically infinitely better than her at combat, but by now she was actually able to use her telekinesis with fluency. She was able to fly and levitate without much effort, and she crushed her first rock yesterday. Mavis now began to teach Fubuki how to do a telekinetic choke, making her apply telekinetic pressure on branches of wood until they snapped.

After combat training was over, at about 8:00 pm, Mavis and Fubuki went downstairs to find Johnny talking with Techno. It sounded important, so Mavis intervened with it.

"What's going on?" she asked, walking out from the shadows, "sounds kinda important."

Johnny rolled his eyes, "Techno wants to reactivate G4 and reprogram him to obey us." he said, "I mean, I told him that it was too risky."

"I can do it with fluency," assured Techno, "I'm telling you, master Jonathan, you don't need to fear G4 as long as I'm within the area. His attacks do not have any affect on me."

Mavis sighed, "Sorry Techno, but no."

Techno did whatever a robot would call a sigh, turned, and whizzed out of the room. Mavis turned to Johnny, kissing him quickly, then turning back to Fubuki, "you can go and sleep," she said, "we're going to be busy tomorrow, don't worry."

After Fubuki went off to her own room, Mavis turned to Johnny, "Come on," she said, "we _are_ going to be busy tomorrow morning, I wasn't joking when I said that."

Johnny nodded, and the two of them retreated to their bedroom.

* * *

Olyra grabbed the next soldier, twisting his neck and killing him with ease. Right now, she was at the border security for Paris. The people there told her she wasn't allowed through. So she made her own way through, by killing anyone who opposed her.

As Olyra walked forward, she saw what must've been the Eiffel Tower in the distance. The tall, steel-iron structure stood there, looming over the rest of the city. When Olyra reached the outermost parisian streets, she noticed an abnormal amount of pedestrians and civilians walking around.

Sure enough, as Olyra made her way through the crowds, she saw what was undoubtedly a massive incineration cannon sitting in front of the Eiffel Tower. It was so big it even slightly impressed her. So _this_ was how they would destroy the Eiffel Tower.

The Eiffel Tower itself was impressive, for human technology. Olyra grudgingly gave the humans that much, but at the same time, the destruction of it meant nothing to her.

Olyra looked around, staring at the crowds, at the many soldiers and pedestrians milling around on the streets. Most of them had dead eyes. Eyes that didn't focus. It was startling, but also reassured Olyra. So this is what the average human looked like.

Nearby, Olyra found a building which appeared to be abandoned. In fact, most of the buildings seemed to have been abandoned, or at least were in very, very bad shape. Signalling to her students, she entered the building, her hands glowing, giving her light.

Inside, there was rubble laying everywhere. On the ground, there were construction tools, such as hammers and drills, lying everywhere. It looked as if whoever lived here once decided to take down the entire place for some reason.

Olyra cleared out some rubble with her telekinesis, and turned to her students, who were looking at her expectantly.

"Alright," she said, "this is it. This is our second chance to kill these pesky humans."

The students didn't speak, they simply stared at her. This is what they were trained to do, to follow orders without questioning them.

"What are we?" asked Olyra.

"We are invincible," said her students uniformly, "We cannot be beat. We cannot be killed. We are the most feared individuals on this planet."

"What will you do to those who oppose us?" asked Olyra.

"We will grind them to dust." said the students, "and this world will remember us as the greatest warriors they have ever seen."

Olyra nodded. She dismissed her students, and they began to set up living quarters in the tiny room. Olyra glared at the broken window. So this is where she was going to live until the humans arrived.

* * *

Mavis woke up the next day. She rolled over, to see Johnny's side of the bed empty. "Johnny?" Mavis got up groggily, telekinetically throwing on her clothes. She walked outside her room, yawning, to see Johnny, Fubuki, and Techno playing chess on the main table.

"Augh! Techno, you _shouldn't_ be in this game." Johnny said to Techno, "honestly how did you know-"

"You had a 87% chance of moving that rook forward, according to the Eisenberg-Ricke correlation hypothesis." said Techno smartly. He moved something on the chessboard, "Checkmate." he said promptly.

"Hey guys," Mavis said casually, leaning on one side of the railing, startling everyone in the room, "what's going on? What time is it?"

"Oh, hey Mavis." said Johnny, "it's only 4:40 am, don't worry. We were gonna wake you up soon anyways. Me and Techno were just teaching Fubuki how to play chess."

Fubuki grinned, "Johnny was getting beaten so hard every time that it's hard to imagine learning from him." she said to Mavis.

Mavis laughed. It was true. Johnny was dreadful at chess.

"Anyways, let's get back to schedule." said Mavis, "come on, let's get onto the _Overpowered_. We'll be able to reach the french coast by Afternoon if we push the engines."

"Yeah, okay." said Johnny, scrambling up, "we should get going."

Mavis grabbed Johnny, pulling him up. Fubuki and Techno followed Mavis and Johnny out of headquarters, walking towards the _Overpowered_.

The three of them, plus Techno,boarded the yacht/battleship. Techno got the engines fired up, and soon enough, they were sailing out, going straight for the coast of France. Mavis just hoped that going to Paris was a good idea.


	66. Natural Allies

"Land ho!" yelled Johnny, pointing towards the horizon. Mavis also saw it. A stretch of land that barely came above the horizon. Mavis had told Techno to bring them to an area on the coast of France that was a decent distance away from the city they fled from, as to avoid detection. Sure enough, this city, after viewing it through the ship's long-range scopes, seemed to be another factory town.

"Yeah, no intelligient humans in this town," said Techno promptly, as he typed in more commands into the central computer on the _Overpowered_ , "unfortunately, that also means that we shouldn't get their attention. They're very strong."

Mavis glanced at Techno, "What?" she asked, "I thought they were mind-controlled."

"They are," said Techno, "but that also means that they've lost all sense of self-preservation. If they are told to kill you, then they will, without holding back. I'm afraid that a mind-controlled civilian is much scarier than a regular soldier."

Mavis didn't speak back immediately. It seemed as if George's plans on taking over the world were going smoothly. "Tell me more about the government that George has set up," she murmured, "how bad is it?"

"Well…" Techno dialed in something onto the main control panel, "George's government controls literally everything, from food rations to thought. They have eliminated all sources of education, comfort, individuality, and differences. They are currently splitting the population into two parties: the purebloods and the laborers. The purebloods are the one who run the government, while the laborers are the ones who work. 99.98% of the population are laborers."

"That's...alot." commented Johnny. He was sitting on a sofa at one side of the bridge, and was just listening in, "this is what happens when there's too much regulation."

"Precisely," said Techno, "currently, all forms of currency have been abolished, the government's scientists are working to abolish the sexual instinct and to abolish gender as a whole, and all inequality has been erased from society. Everything, from advertisements to television to large businesses are currently being heavily regulated. Journalism and private citizenry have been outlawed by George as well."

Mavis stared at Techno. She never liked inequality. As a vampire, most humans looked down on her. But this...this was not what she wanted.

"It isn't right to do this," Mavis finally said, "and now they want to take down the Eiffel Tower…"

"That's what we're here for." said Fubuki, leaning back on her reclining chair in the front, "anyways, Techno, we're drawing near. Want to prep the helicopter for travel?"

"Yes, we can start doing that." said Techno, whizzing out of his chair and going to the back of the _Overpowered_ , "You guys stay here. I'm going to go and fuel up the helicopter."

Mavis stood up, "Won't we get spotted by the civilians?" she asked, "I mean, unless our helicopter has a cloak-"

"Which it does." cut in Techno, "I assure you, Miss Dracula, that the helicopter is meant for stealth above all things. Nobody will see us."

Mavis nodded, "Alright," she said, "get it fueled up then. We're leaving in a few minutes, anyways."

Sure enough, Techno eventually whizzed back into the bridge, a few minutes later. This time, he had oil dripping from one side of his display, but otherwise he looked fine. "The helicopter is fueled up," he said, "come on, let's get going."

Mavis, Fubuki, and Johnny went outside, to where the helicopter was. As soon as Mavis's eyes landed on it, she knew that it was something to be feared. The entire helicopter was in a sleek, smooth, jet-black armor plating. There were three cockpits, one in the front and one in the back, but the one in the front had two seats. As Mavis climbed into the cockpit, a display appeared on the glass, showing her the route she was taking, the weapons systems, and the cloaking status.

As Techno began firing up the engines, Mavis asked him, "how're we gonna hide the _Overpowered_ though?"

"I installed an underwater setting just for that." replied Techno promptly, "wait a second…"

The engines turned on completely, and the helicopter began to rise steadily. Beneath them, the _Overpowered_ slowly began to sink beneath the waves.

"It'll stay right there until we return." said Techno proudly, "nobody will ever find it. It also comes with its own cloaking system to hide from underwater detection tools."

Mavis nodded slowly. Maybe she _had_ underestimated Techno's usefulness in the war.

After making sure the _Overpowered_ was safe beneath the waves, Techno slid into a small compartment that he made for himself, "Alright, I'm handing controls over to you guys, please mind not to crash the helicopter." he said.

With that, Techno vanished into the compartment.

Mavis began flipping dials and switches, pressing buttons and entering in commands into the control center of the helicopter. The controls were very similar to that of a airplane, so Mavis was already familiar with them.

Soon they were whizzing over the coast of France, covering ground faster than Mavis thought a helicopter could cover in the time they had. The cloaking systems _were_ pretty advanced, rendering the entire helicopter invisible, and making them undetectable to radar or tracking devices.

Next to Mavis, Johnny sat at the controls as well. He had the weapons systems at his command, which he marveled at, test-firing some of the helicopter's guns at random trees or rocks that they passed.

After about an hour of flight, Techno informed them through the helicopter's internal intercom that they were drawing within fifteen minutes of Paris. Mavis wasn't surprised at this. The helicopter went _very_ fast.

Sure enough, Mavis soon spotted, with her extrasensory perception, a sign underneath them that read, "Bienvenue à Paris."

Behind the sign, a large city sprawled out in front of them. Low-standing buildings made up the majority of the city, with a few buildings that jutted out above the others, as if to show off their importance.

As Mavis flew the helicopter over the city, she immediately spotted the Eiffel Tower, sitting in the center of the entire city. It was surrounded by multiple squadrons of soldiers, and, just like how Techno described it, in front of all these soldiers was a massive incineration cannon. The barrel of the cannon was already about 6 stories high, and it was carried by a massive truck.

"That's what we're after." murmured Johnny, "that's the thing we're supposed to destroy?"

Mavis was also growing concerned. She thought destroying a cannon would be easy, but this particular one seemed to have been heavily armored, not to mention that dozens of soldiers and tanks that were surrounding it.

"Apparently, that's the thing we're supposed to blow up." said Mavis, nodding slowly.

Fubuki didn't seem to look concerned. She kept a straight face, "So...when do we drop?" she asked, "I mean, we can't just go straight for the cannon, judging by the fact that it's completely surrounded…"

"No, we can't." agreed Johnny.

Mavis's eyes scanned the area, her extrasensory perception kicking in. She suddenly had an idea. Before George had taken power, the Eiffel Tower had been embedded into the ground, its four legs being nailed into the ground, to prevent it from becoming unstable. Now, the Eiffel Tower seemed to have been uprooted. The four legs weren't in the ground anymore. Instead, they were sitting outside the ground. Behind the Eiffel Tower, Mavis noticed four massive craters.

George had dug the Eiffel Tower right out of the ground in anticipation for the weapon demonstration. And according to a poster that was attached to the side wall a few meters away from where the helicopter was, the incineration cannon would be done charging in two days.

Mavis's idea was crazy. It was insane. She turned to Johnny, "If we can't destroy the cannon, then why don't we just steal the cannon's target?"

At first, Johnny looked confused. But then he began to realize what Mavis wanted to do.

"Mavis...even you-" he began, but Mavis cut him off.

"It's the only way." she insisted, "There're at least twelve squadrons of soldiers, along with aerial support that are guarding the incineration cannon. Nothing's gonna get near that. But I think that I _can_ carry the Eiffel Tower."

Fubuki hearing this, also stared at Mavis, "But...I mean...it's so _big_." she said.

"I've carried alot of big stuff in my life," said Mavis, "I can carry a little more. You guys just have to hold off the soldiers for me. Fubuki, remember your combat training. Got it?"

Fubuki nodded hesitantly, still looking worried, "Alright." she said.

Johnny looked at Mavis, "You...you better make it out alive." Mavis managed to say, before Johnny kissed her for a full ten seconds. " _You_ better make it out alive." Johnny corrected, "I'll be fine."

Mavis nodded hesitantly, "Let's go." she said.

* * *

General Seitz roared with anger, throwing his pen across the bridge, where it broke in half as it collided with the opposite wall. How stupid was Adolf Hitler? Did he not understand his situation? Did he not make himself clear enough?

In General Seitz's white-clenched hands, was the encrypted message he had just received from Adolf Hitler.

 _General Seitz,_

 _You are, under no conditions, to return to the fatherland. You are to stay in your current position, and hold it under all costs. I have began funding for three more fleets, that will soon be combined with yours to form the largest naval army in the world, even in terms of the future world. I understand that your men are starving, and thirsting to death. However, I'm afraid that I cannot help you at the moment for that. You are to hold your ground right now, in order to secure safe passage for the three fleets that I will be sending in a few days._

 _As for the future world itself, I am heavily disappointed in you. You should be able to conquer the Africans, out of all people, with ease. You are to continue the invasions, and capture a port for the fleets I will be sending through shortly. ._

 _Heil,_

 _-Adolf Hitler_

General Seitz seethed with anger. His crew was on the brink of mutiny. He couldn't do this forever. His commanding officer had already begun to doubt the solidarity of the Fuhrer, as well as most of the crew.

General Seitz himself now saw why Germans would ever oppose Adolf Hitler. So he did the one thing he knew he shouldn't do.

He commited treason.

For good reason as well. Literally nobody else apart from him was loyal to the Fuhrer anymore. Most of the crew felt abandoned by him, after receiving word that he expected them to "hold their position". So he finally announced it to the crew, and to the officers. On the intercom of every ship in the fleet, his voice came on.

"My name is General Seitz of the German/Japanese Fleet," he began, "today, I am doing what I know would most benefit my crew and my fleet. As many of you know, the Fuhrer has instructed us to stay in this world and capture ports that we know we can't capture. Because of this, I am officially separating the German/Japanese fleet from Nazi Germany."

General Seitz hung up the phone. At first, there was silence, then General Seitz noticed...cheering?

All around him, on others ships, and on his own flagship, crew members were rushing out, cheering and clapping. Even the disciplined Japanese soldiers were celebrating. In the bridge, several officers clapped General Seitz on the back, congratulating him for his courageous move.

But even with all of this celebration, General Seitz still knew the enormity of what he just did. He was a traitor to the Third Reich. If he was found, he would be killed on the spot, without any questions asked.

Adolf Hitler was under the impression that he was following his orders, when he actually wasn't. General Seitz quickly ordered the entire fleet to turn hard rudder 32 degrees to the right. He was going to return to the portal. And when he did return to the portal, he would drop anchor, and destroy anything that came out of it, including the three fleets that Hitler was going to send through. He had to ensure the survival of his fleet and crew.

But then he realized something. The four individuals Adolf Hitler had sent him through the portal originally for. The so-called "aliens", the human, and the robot. They never openly attacked General Seitz's fleet, but had only tried to fight for their own survival. Meanwhile, the government in this time period seemed quite technologically advanced, and those four individuals seemed to be fighting against it. Unlike the aliens, the government actually seemed to have an interest in killing them.

General Seitz sighed. It would appear as if fate had brought him a few natural allies.


	67. Spirit of Paris

Mavis took the initiative, pressing a button on the side that launched all three of them out of the helicopter. As they were in the air, Mavis lowered Johnny telekinetically to the ground, while Fubuki used telekinetic flight to reach the Eiffel Tower.

Almost immediately, alarms started blaring. Sirens began wailing. The soldiers saw them and immediately set up formation around the incineration cannon, firing their guns at them.

Johnny's doom blades activated, and he began to take up the defensive, slicing through bullets as if they were butter. Next to him, Fubuki helped block the bullets telekinetically. Tanks rolled into the street, opening fire on their position, and Johnny was forced to hide behind a building, as the place where he just was was obliterated by firepower.

Fubuki decided to take the offensive, flying straight at the tanks, melting them all with her fire. She then sent out a shockwave that knocked back a row of soldiers.

"Mavis, get the tower!" yelled Johnny, running out from behind the building, and going straight for the soldiers.

Mavis nodded, closing her eyes and concentrated. Around her, she could feel the bullets whizzing past her, but Fubuki seemed to be covering for her as far as the bullets went. She felt the entire bulk of the Eiffel Tower, and she slowly began to lift it, pushing it upwards, until-

"Mavis, you're doing it!" yelled Fubuki, as she melted another row of humvees, "keep it up!"

Johnny saw the officers yell orders desperately, as another dozen tanks began rolling down the streets, firing their cannons. Johnny cursed. The officers were taking the offensive.

"Oh, I don't think so!" yelled Fubuki, launching a fireball that collided with the road, melting a pothole right in the center of it, and incinerating a tank.

Johnny ran through the lines of soldiers, cutting through them easily, right as one particular soldier managed to hit him in the back of the head with his gun. Johnny stumbled back, dazed, but quickly regained his stance. He yelled, charging forward and slicing that soldier clean in half.

Behind Johnny, the Eiffel Tower was hovering five stories above the ground. Slowly, it began to move towards the west side of Paris, towards the area where they came from.

Johnny cursed. He was so _stupid_. They didn't even come up with a plan on where to move the Eiffel Tower.

It was then when the helicopter they came to Paris in appeared, right next to Mavis. The tiny form of Techno came out of the helicopter. Whatever Techno was about to do, Johnny really hoped it had to do with helping them get the Eiffel Tower out of the area.

Fubuki yelled, and a fireball exploded outwards from where she was, engulfing the entire street in a temporary flash of green light that incinerated everything within thirty meters of Fubuki.

"Johnny, get over to Mavis and figure out what's going on!" ordered Fubuki, blasting streams of fire in all directions, "we need to get outta here before these guys call on more fighters!"

Johnny nodded and ran over to where Mavis was. She was still concentrating, lifting the Eiffel Tower high above the ground. Next to her, Techno's display was glowing.

"What're you guys doing?" yelled Johnny, "we have to get this thing moving!"

"I just told Miss Dracula exactly how to do that." said Techno calmly, "let her do her magic. It should happen anytime around now…"

As if on cue, Mavis gave out a gasp. Her eyes dimmed, and she collapsed onto the ground.

"Mavis!" Johnny knelt down, turning her over. Her heartbeat was still there, but it was quite faint. Techno whizzed over next to Johnny, "she's okay," said Techno, "she's just very tired. I'll take care of her. You go and help Fubuki defend!"

Johnny scowled. He hated leaving Mavis in this state. But as he turned around, he also saw the waves and waves of soldiers and tanks that were rolling in. Whatever Mavis did, it better work very soon, or else they were all dead.

Even Fubuki was being pushed back by the tanks, which had opened fire on her. Fubuki blasted a stream of fire, disintegrating the first few tanks, but the others simply continued converging on her.

"These damn tanks are annoying!" yelled Fubuki, as she deflected another shell, "Johnny, a little help would be nice anywhere around now!"

Johnny jumped in, slicing the tracks off of the tanks, and stabbing the engines, disabling the tanks, but letting the pilots survive.

As another shell exploded near Johnny, he was forced to jump behind a pile of rubble. His eyes found Mavis. She was still unconscious, lying in front of the Eiffel Tower, which was still somehow hovering above her despite her being unconscious.

Near Mavis, an attack helicopter swung into view, opening fire on her, but Techno was able to grab Mavis and sweep her out of the way, keeping her safe. Johnny cursed. George was sending in aerial support.

Fubuki flew up, melting the cockpit of the assault helicopter, and telekinetically throwing a second one against the nearest wall. Right as she did that, however-

 _BOOOM_

There was a massive explosion as the entire platoon of soldiers guarding the incineration cannon was wiped out. Johnny stared, as Olyra walked through the dust and rubble. Behind her, three heavily-armored warriors armed with silver swords followed.

"FUBUKI!" roared Olyra. While still flying, Fubuki was suddenly grabbed and thrown towards the ground, cracking the earth where she landed.

Fubuki got back up, spitting blood out of her mouth, "How the hell did you find us." she hissed venomously at Olyra.

"It took me long enough, I'll admit that." seethed Olyra, "but in the end, I've finally found you. Surrender. You're no match for my strength."

Fubuki spat at Olyra, "I'm not as weak as I once was."

Olyra's face immediately became twisted with a terrible scowl, "How _dare_ you!" she hissed, "I'm your older sister! You _have_ to obey me!"

"You are nothing."

Fubuki blasted Olyra back with a telekinetic shockwave, slamming her against a wall, but before she could do anything else, Olyra had jumped out of the way.

"Finally learned how to use telekinesis?" taunted Olyra, "took you long enough!"

"More than that." said Fubuki, "I learned to choose the right side, unlike you. Leave me alone, sister."

Olyra streaked at Fubuki, grabbing her telekinetically by the neck and pinning her to the ground, but Fubuki managed to break free right in time, unleashing a fireball that forced Olyra to retreat.

Johnny ran in, trying to intervene, but was blocked by the three heavily-armored guards. Johnny activated both doom blades, and lunged at them. Soon enough, he was locked in an intense 3 versus 1 sword fight.

"Give up, Fubuki!" yelled Olyra, as she slammed Fubuki against another wall, "you are weak compared to me!"

Fubuki _was_ growing more tired, but she refused to show it. She launched fireball after fireball, but finally, after almost fifteen minutes of straight fighting, she was slammed so hard against the ground that her breath was knocked right out of her lungs. While struggling for breath, Fubuki felt Olyra grab her by the neck and throw her against another wall.

 _So this is it_ , thought Fubuki, as she was slammed into wall after wall, each one making her vision blurrier and blurrier, _this is where I die_.

 _GRRrrrrrghzzzzz_

The noise was so loud, so tremendous, that nobody in the entire city could ignore it. Fubuki looked up, Olyra looked up, the guards looked up, the soldiers looked up, Johnny looked up, even Techno looked up.

The Eiffel Tower was changing. Steel cables were levitating, then reattaching themselves to other parts of the tower. Metal bars and steel platforms were rearranging themselves. There was a loud groan, as the entire Eiffel Tower underwent a transformation, turning into a massive colossus of metal and steel.

A colossus that was apparently conscious.

Two blue spots appeared on what was the head of the Colossus, as it stared down at them. Johnny saw a wisp of blue gas/vapor that was flowing into the colossus. He traced the wisp down to the unconscious Mavis.

Mavis...was doing this?

The colossus was massive, about ninety stories high. It looked down at them, and saw Olyra, who was still clutching Fubuki's neck.

"Pas d'ami blesse." the Colossus said. It's voice was deep and metallic, as if it was coming from a really, really old stereo. After nothing happened, the voice grew angrier.

"PAS D'AMI BLESSE!" it roared. It's hand came out of the nowhere, hitting Olyra so hard that she was blasted right through thirty buildings. It then stepped on the platoons of human soldiers, killing them all.

On the ground, Mavis began to stir. Johnny ran over to her, helping her up, "Mavis? Mavis? You okay?"

Mavis looked barely conscious. She only managed to say, "Ugh...um...yeah?"

"We have to get going!" yelled Johnny, "come on, let's get back onto the-"

A tomahawk missile suddenly flew out of nowhere, exploding on the side of the Eiffel Tower. In response, the Eiffel Tower grabbed a nearby building and threw it like a frisbee, nailing the missile truck that fired the tomahawk.

But that wasn't enough to stop all of them. Dozens of missiles began flying from all directions, hitting the Eiffel Tower and causing it to shake. The Eiffel Tower charged forward, roaring, smashing through buildings and decimating entire platoons of soldiers, tanks, and missile trucks.

Above them, the helicopter decloaked, dropping down to where they were. Johnny helped Mavis into the helicopter, strapping her in. Fubuki climbed in, and Johnny clambered into the cockpit last. After Techno slid into his compartment, Johnny began flipping switches.

Soon enough, they began to rise. A missile exploded near them, but soon they were cloaked and invisible from everyone else.

As they were rising, Johnny saw the Eiffel Tower. By now, it had taken a real beating. Smoke was coming off of it at all angles. Part of its body were nothing but twisted hunks of metal.

Nevertheless, it still fought. Roaring, the Eiffel Tower smashed the ground like donkey kong, causing the ground to shake, and swiped his hand across the ground in front of him, destroying another convoy of military trucks, right before another twelve tomahawk missiles slammed into him.

As the Eiffel Tower roared again, Johnny turned back to the cockpit window. Behind him, the spirit of France died, fighting.

* * *

A few hours later…

Mavis's memory was terrible. She didn't remember anything after attempting to give life to the Eiffel Tower. All she remembered was feeling as if she was going to die, then blacking out.

Maybe she was dead.

No, she wasn't. She was breathing. She could smell the salt water outside. She could feel the rock of the boat.

Mavis opened her eyes ever so slightly, looking around her. She was sitting in the very same bed Johnny slept in when he almost got killed by her.

"Ugh…" Mavis sat up, rubbing her head, which hurt alot.

In the front of the bridge, Techno was steering the _Overpowered_ , "Miss Dracula, you are finally awake!" he said jovially, "sit back down, you won't do yourself any good in that state…"

Mavis groaned and plopped back down onto the pillows. She _was_ incredibly tired at the moment.

Fubuki walked through the door. When she saw Mavis, she rushed over, "You okay?" she asked, "Mavis, I have so many questions…"

Mavis nodded, "Yeah?"

Fubuki gulped, "Well...first off….how did you _do_ that?"

"What?" Mavis thought for a moment, "Oh...that...well, I just kinda put some of my life force into the Eiffel Tower. I hope it worked, 'cause I honestly don't remember…"

"It worked alright," grinned Fubuki, "but...we weren't able to save the Eiffel Tower."

"No, I already made that assumption." said Mavis, "we...were not ready to pull that off. But we put up a decent fight at least. I remember...Olyra?"

"Yeah, my sister found us somehow." said Fubuki uncomfortably.

Mavis shifted, "Fubuki...tell me, are you truly loyal to us?"

Fubuki stared at her, "Um...yeah, of course I am." she said, surprised by the question, "what? You doubt my loyalty?"

"No, not like that," muttered Mavis, "it's just...your sister is so _destructive_ with her power."

Fubuki nodded, "Yeah," she murmured, "in my world, that type of power is encouraged. The people who have that type of power are the ones who are at the top."

"Yeah…" Mavis laid back down, "listen, Fubuki, you can go back outside and do whatever...I'm gonna sleep…"

Fubuki nodded, "Get some good sleep then." she said, patting Mavis on the shoulder, "you really earned it this time."

Mavis nodded. She was tired. Too tired. Too tired to sense the German spy plane that was flying above them at that very moment.


	68. Third Reich Reborn

Mavis's eyes fluttered open. As her vision adjusted, she quickly recognized the interior of Headquarters. She was sitting on a bed. The same one she used to treat Johnny when he was wounded.

Mavis groaned, trying to get up, and immediately regretted it. A wave of vertigo swept through her, making her eyes go wobbly. Nobody was in headquarters at the moment, so Mavis assumed that they were either sleeping or training, or planning.

Mavis sat back down. It didn't matter. She was already confused enough over what she did yesterday. She put her own life force...into the Eiffel Tower?

What?

Mavis silently grabbed a piece of paper from the desk, telekinetically folding it into an origami bird. She closed her eyes, concentrating a tiny bit, and suddenly gasped. Her eyes flew open. She felt as if she was dying. But then she looked down.

The origami bird was looking at her. _Looking_ at her. It then leaned down, pecked Mavis's hand affectionately, and flew over to a table nearby. Mavis stared at her hands. She...did she have a new power?

Well, duh.

Mavis began to think. After giving the origami bird life, she felt as if she was about to die...did that mean that she was lending her own life force to whatever she was trying to make alive?

Mavis didn't decide to push it. She laid back down, her head resting against the plush pillows behind her.

"Hey, Mavis, you alright?"

Mavis jumped, her eyes swiveling around, until they landed on none other than Johnny, who had just come out of the bedroom.

"Oh...yeah, I'm fine," said Mavis, "you don't have to worry about me...I feel okay, honestly."

"Well, you don't look okay," muttered Johnny, as he hurried forward, "here…." Johnny lifted Mavis's shirt lightly, "you got hit by 47 bullets yesterday, you know that, right?" he asked, "any normal person would've been killed. But your regenerative health seems to be working."

Mavis gaped. 47 bullet wounds? She looked down at her stomach, but saw nothing but smooth, uninjured skin. "What the…" she murmured, "I didn't know I could resist _that_ much."

"Yeah, well I didn't think so as well," said Johnny, "you looked terrible on the ride back, honestly. And...what is that?" Johnny asked, pointing to the origami bird that was flying around at the table.

"I...uh, created that." said Mavis lamely, "I mean, I was testing out my new powers. It appears that I can lend my life force to other inanimate objects. But its pretty difficult…."

"Yeah, you don't say," muttered Johnny, "you almost got yourself killed from lending your life force to the damn Eiffel Tower."

Mavis rolled her eyes, "I'm fine, Johnny," she insisted, "just...help me up, will you?"

"Hey, what're you-"

Mavis levitated herself above the bed, then landed on the ground, wincing slightly. "Ow...yeah, I have a bad headache." she muttered, as she slowly began to walk over to the front doors of headquarters. Johnny scrambled over, helping Mavis walk.

The two of them made their way outside. It was still night, about 2:00 am, and outside, the bioluminescent bacteria lit up the beach, making it look even more beautiful at night.

Mavis gasped suddenly, and leaned forward, breathing hard. Johnny immediately helped her back up, "Mavis? You okay?"

Mavis's vision was tinged with red. She couldn't concentrate. She was…. _hungry._

Mavis only managed to say a few words: "get me...something...that lives…."

Johnny stared at her, "Uh...okay then," he said, laying Mavis down on the sand, "Mavis, you don't seem okay...you should go back down and-"

Mavis gasped yet again, her eyes turning from blue to black, and Johnny noticed what was going on. Around Mavis, the bushes and grass were withering away. A squirrel that was hanging on a tree nearby suddenly choked to death, and a seashell next to Mavis completely melted.

Mavis's eyes flew open. They were blue. Bright blue. She sat up, "What happened?" she asked. She sounded energetic, as if she was in the middle of a battle. Her eyes were wide with anticipation.

Johnny stared at her, "You...what was that?" he asked.

Mavis looked around her, staring at the withering greenery, and the dead animals that were around her. Her face turned from energetic to horrified, "What did I do?" she murmured.

"It looks as if you needed the life force of other things in order to refill the life force you lost in battle yesterday," said Johnny, helping Mavis up, "you were just...recharging after the battle, I guess."

"Oh...okay." Mavis looked back, at the circle of withered grass and shrubbery, at the dead animals that marked where she just was, "so I can give life, but I can also take life?" she murmured, "that's a...strange power."

"No, it's a pretty badass power." said Johnny, grinning, "just don't overdo yourself with it, or we'll all be dead. Here you go…"

Johnny helped Mavis down onto their bed, where Johnny sat down next to her.

The two of them slowly began to fall asleep, when suddenly-

 _Warning: warships of unknown origin spotted on the horizon, heading straight for us. Warning: warships of unknown origin spotted on the horizon, heading straight for us._

Mavis's eyes flew open. Johnny's eyes flew open. They both scrambled up, Johnny grabbing a doom blade, and Mavis zipping out of the room so fast it kicked up dust. In the main room, Fubuki had also woken up, her hands glowing with energy.

"Oh, Mavis, you're awake." she said, "whatever, there's an intruder, we gotta take care of 'em."

Mavis nodded. The three of them ran outside. Techno was already on the beach. Around him, the island's endless security measures were activating. Anti Aircraft guns popped out of the ground, incineration cannons opened up from the ground, and the _Overpowered_ and _USS Iowa_ had already set up defensive formation on their own.

"Where are they?" Mavis asked Techno, "who are they?"

Techno's displays lit up, "They're out there," said Techno, pointing to a speck on the horizon, "and according to the data from my radar scans, they're of Nazi Germany origin."

"Shit," muttered Fubuki, "aren't those the guys who want to kill us?"

Mavis snorted, "That's an understatement." she muttered, "anyways, how did they find us?"

"No idea…" murmured Techno, "wait, I'm receiving a radio transmissions from their flagship, which is apparently the _Tirpitz_."

Techno paused for a moment, then his voice suddenly became monotone, as he read what the radio transmission said.

 _We come in peace_

Mavis stared at Techno. "What?" she asked incredulously, "they come in peace? How does that make any sense?"

"Don't ask me." said Techno, "clearly, they want us to believe that. Maybe it's legitimate. According to my estimations, the Germans should be starving right now without any external support. A mutiny is not actually unlikely."

Mavis paused. Nazi Germany as an ally?

Johnny, who standing next to Mavis, shifted uncomfortably. He didn't want to ignore a possible alliance, but at the same time, he didn't want to get blown to bits by a German Fleet.

The fleet now came into full view. At least seventy or so warships. Mavis's extrasensory perception allowed her to see the crew of the ships. They _were_ thin, almost like ghosts. Mavis could definitely see the reason behind mutiny, but was still hesitant.

"Tell them to only send one ship." she said, "and make sure its a destroyer."

Techno nodded. His display began to glow as he sent radio transmissions out to the fleet. "Okay, they've just received my messages." said Techno promptly.

Mavis's senses suddenly jolted a little, "They're coming." she said, "they're approaching the island….with a destroyer."

It was true. Mavis could see the German destroyer approach Paradise. It was alone, so she wasn't too worried about it. "They _are_ alone, so….hold your fire." she said to Techno.

Techno nodded. The guns and defenses that the island was equipped with followed the destroyer as it drew near, but didn't fire. By now, Mavis could see the Nazi flag that was waving in the wind on the destroyer.

The four of them watched suspiciously as the destroyer docked outside the island. It wasn't too far away from the island itself, but was still behind the _USS Iowa_ and the _Overpowered_. Mavis saw the crew lower a boat into the water. Three men boarded the boat, two of which were armed with rifles.

It was confirmed then. The Germans were here to legitimately make peace with them? If they wanted to attack their island they would've done so a while ago. And anyways, Mavis could easily take care of three 1900 era soldiers.

As the boat drew near, Mavis saw the Germans that were on the boat stare up in awe at the guns of the _USS Iowa_. One of the soldiers was heavily decorated with medals and badges, and the other two looked like normal soldiers.

The boat reached the shore, and the soldiers jumped out, towing it onto the sand. The heavily-decorated soldier, after making sure the boat was fine, walked over to Mavis, Johnny, Fubuki, and Techno.

"Greetings," he said. Mavis noticed that he had a very german accent, "I am General Seitz, commander of this fleet. We've come here to...um...offer an alliance to you. We both have a common enemy in this world."

Mavis watched him carefully, "Are you not loyal to Adolf Hitler anymore? Does he not want you to kill us anymore?"

General Seitz shifted uncomfortably, "Actually," he said, "he _does_ want me to kill you, but me and my commanding officers have made the decision that the survival of the fleet and crew is more important than the personal goals of the Fuhrer. I am, as you would say it, committing treason."

Mavis glanced at Techno and Johnny, "You're betraying Nazi Germany?" she asked.

"Well...not Nazi Germany, no." said General Seitz, "I'm betraying Adolf Hitler. It's my personal belief that Adolf Hitler only cares about himself, not the German people."

"So why do you come to us?" asked Fubuki, "why do you want to ally yourselves with us, out of all people? We can kill you right now, you know."

At this, the General's soldiers gripped their weapons a little tighter, but General Seitz simply sighed, "I come to you because we are natural allies," he said, "I am under the impression that you are fighting against the government of this world?"

"Yes, that's true." said Mavis.

"Well, then we have a common enemy, and a common goal." said General Seitz promptly, "We are both trying to survive the government, and we are both trying to destroy it at the same time."

Mavis slowly nodded, "I guess that does make sense…" she murmured, "we will have to make arrangements though. Your men outnumber us by alot."

General Seitz laughed crudely, "I assure you, my men wouldn't dare approach you in battle after the stories we've heard about you guys. Point is, we should become allies, and help each other when needed."

"Yes...I guess that may be plausible…" murmured Mavis, "anyways, come on inside, it's getting cold out here…"

Mavis led General Seitz through the massive blast doors, and into headquarters. There, they all sat down around the main table. Techno brought over some extra chairs for General Seitz and the two soldiers.

"So...first off...if we _are_ to make an alliance system," said Mavis, "then we must be clear about our situations. We are not going to combine forces. We are going to still act separately and for ourselves, we simply agree to help each other when needed, correct?"

General Seitz nodded, "Yes, that would be correct." he said.

"Then we have an agreement on that much at least," murmured Mavis, "by the way, as for introductions, I'm Mavis Dracula, this is Johnny, and this is Fubuki. The robot is Techno."

As General Seitz shook hands with everyone apart from Techno, Johnny decided to ask the big question, "So...since you've betrayed Adolf Hitler, won't he come after you?"

General Seitz shook his head, "No," he said promptly, "Adolf Hitler doesn't know what's happening. He is still under the impression that I'm working for him."

"Mavis, you seem to be the leader of this group," commented General Seitz, "tell me then, what's your situation?"

Mavis paused, "I'm…." Mavis thought of lying, but remembered that General Seitz was honest with her, "I'm kind of...not a human."

General Seitz raised an eyebrow, "Oh?" he said, not hiding the surprise in his voice, "and how so? You look human, you speak like a human."

To prove her point, Mavis grabbed a rock from the ground and levitated it in front of General Seitz's eyes. General Seitz stared, gaping. Mavis crushed the rock to dust.

"I'm a vampire." she said blankly, "Fubuki is from another world, and Johnny is the only human amongst us."

"I see…." murmured General Seitz, still staring at the pile of dust that was a rock.

It was then when alarms began blaring yet again, jarring everyone's attention towards the TV screen.

 _Warning: Additional Warships spotted on the horizon. Warning: Additional Warships spotted on the horizon._

Techno rushed in, "George is attacking!" he said, slightly panicked, "I'm deploying all defenses, now. This island must survive."

Mavis scrambled up, "General Seitz," she said, "this might be the first test of how loyal we are to this alliance. Try not to disappoint me."


	69. Sibling Rivalry

By the time Mavis had made her way outside, it was already too late. The German Fleet was engaged with an assault feet that George must've sent. "Crap." muttered Mavis, "General, get to your ship. Prove to me that you're my ally."

General Seitz ran over to the boat, yelling orders to the other two soldiers, but Mavis knew it wouldn't be fast enough. With a flick of her hand, Mavis levitated General Seitz up and over the water, back onto the destroyer he came in.

"Techno, come on!" yelled Mavis, flying onto the _USS Iowa_. Behind her, Fubuki and Johnny also boarded the ship. The _Overpowered_ AI also activated, and the two warships began sailing out towards the massive firefight that was already beginning.

On the _USS Iowa_ , Mavis already knew that the fleet was in trouble. George's attack fleet was made of about a dozen destroyers, which launched Tomahawk missiles and long-range railguns with deadly efficiency against the german fleet. The only advantage the Germans had were their numbers.

Mavis yelled, "AI, fire railguns!"

The _USS Iowa_ 's four railguns fired, launching high-powered explosives that cut through one of the lead assault destroyers, literally ripping it in half.

The Germans, however, were in disarray. They didn't know how to fight against modern technology. Dozens of destroyers from the German Fleet made head-on charges, launching bold torpedo strikes against George's forces, but the modern-day destroyers were simply too fast and too maneuverable. The battleships fired massive 16-inch shells that sent huge plumes of water into the air. One of these 16-inch shells actually hit, cutting through the armor of one of the destroyers and blowing it sky-high.

"It won't be enough…" murmured Johnny, who was standing next to Mavis, "come on, Mavis, we have to join the fight."

Mavis nodded. "AI, send us straight into the battle." she said calmly, "fire all guns as soon as they get within accurate range."

The _USS Iowa_ and the _Overpowered_ moved in, whizzing past German destroyers and battleships with the speed only a vampiric core could provide. Mavis saw the _Tirpitz_ , leading a group of four battleships in a head-on charge at the enemy. Its deck was on fire, but it still fired its guns, aiming as well as it could.

The _USS Iowa_ went in front of the _Tirpitz_ , leading the way. All around them, shells exploded on the _USS Iowa_ 's shields, but the shielding still held, maintaining a steady shield level at 84%.

As the _USS Iowa_ got within range, it fired, raining missiles and high-explosive machine gun fire onto enemy ships. The group of 8 destroyers who were still there seemed to slow down, as the Fleet General seemed to realize who was leading the attack now.

Behind the _USS Iowa_ , the _Tirpitz_ and the three other battleships opened fire, raining 16-inch shells on the now-slowing destroyers. Most of the shells missed, but one of them managed to make a direct hit on one of the enemy destroyers, turning it into a massive fireball, and probably killing everyone on board instantly.

By now, the _USS Iowa_ and the _Overpowered_ were head-to-head with the enemy destroyers. Immediately, the short-range weapons activated, shredding the decks of enemy ships and ripping holes through their hulls.

Out of the 8 destroyers that were in the battle to begin with, 7 of them were either sunk or completely incinerated by the 16-inch shells, or else shredded to dust by the _USS Iowa_ 's main cannons. The last destroyer fled the battlefield, turning hard rudder and sailing straight away from them.

Mavis sighed, leaning back on her chair, "that was...surprisingly easy." she said.

Johnny, however, shook his head, "Look." he murmured, pointing at the area behind them.

Behind the _USS Iowa_ , the destroyers and battleships looked completely defeated. There were at least twenty ships that were either in the process of sinking or were already sunk. Most of the ships were on fire, or had sustained massive damage.

"We have to help them." said Mavis, "AI, bring us back to the island, and send a radio transmission to General Seitz. Tell him that...we'll help him with repairs and supplies."

Mavis hesitated in between, but still went through with it. She _had_ made a promise, after all. This was the least she could do in an alliance.

* * *

A few hours later…

Mavis looked around, from her point on Paradise. All around the tiny island were dozens of destroyers and battleships, each one docked in a near-perfect circle. All of the survivors had been rescued, courtesy to Mavis's extrasensory perception, and Techno had wrapped up repairs to the ships in the blink of an eye.

General Seitz and several thousand other German Naval Officers were either sitting on the deck of the _Tirpitz_ , enjoying a nice meal that Techno prepared, or else resting belowdecks.

Mavis had given the Germans everything she thought was necessary. Techno was able to cook up lamb stew, roast beef, white rice, and ice cream for every crew member in the area. Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki also got to meet some of the officers from the fleet.

Mavis wasn't actually too worried about betrayal. The crew members did look _very_ happy that they finally had food and water, and a place to stay. Many of them even went to Mavis to personally offer their thanks.

After completely refuelling their ships, and upgrading the weaponry and engines of the fleet, Techno announced that the German Fleet was ready to depart. At that point, Mavis had also question Techno about the issue regarding George's Fleet and Paradise, but Techno had informed Mavis that he had blocked off all communications from the assault fleet, so George didn't know where they were.

As the Germans were heading back to their ships, General Seitz turned to Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki.

"My greatest thanks," he said, bowing, "I really do hope that our alliance will serve both of us some benefit in the future."

"Yes, of course," said Mavis, "what are your plans, just out of curiosity?"

"To be quite honest, I don't know," said General Seitz, "I'm planning on occupying an uninhabited island, maybe starting a small civilization there. I do hope that we didn't disturb your island too much."

"No, it's fine," said Johnny, "we're just glad to finally have an ally."

"It's all my pleasure," General Seitz smiled warmly, "if you need any help, just call the number I gave you, we should receive it within a few minutes."

"Yeah," said Mavis, "and you remember how to contact us?"

"How could I forget?" said General Seitz, "anyways, I must be on my way now. Thanks, and farewell!"

"Bye!" Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki all waved to General Seitz, as he boarded the _Tirpitz,_ and vanished into its bridge. Soon, the fleet began to sail away, disappearing over the horizon.

As the last ship disappeared over the horizon, Mavis noticed that it was nighttime. Almost time to sleep. But something was still bugging Mavis. She frowned. What was it this time? She had just made an alliance, she should be happy.

Then she remembered Captain James.

Someone, who in literally all aspects, was similar to General Seitz. A captain who betrayed his orders in order to help them.

As Mavis and Johnny went into their bedroom, it was Mavis to speak first.

"I'm worried…." she murmured, "about General Seitz."

Johnny glanced at him from the other side of the bed, "He's perfectly safe," he said, "he has an entire fleet to protect him, along with aircraft carriers and everything. Techno modernized the fleet, remember?"

"Yes…" Mavis nodded slowly, "but...Captain James was so similar to him. He died as well. What if the same happens to General Seitz? He's a good person, I don't want him to die."

Johnny sighed. He leaned down and kissed Mavis quickly, "Listen Mavey," he said, catching Mavis off guard with the revived usage of her nickname, "General Seitz'll be fine. He's the commander of an entire fleet, not just one ship."

Mavis nodded slowly. "I...hope you're right." she said, laying down onto the silk pillows, "goodnight, Johnny."

"Goodnight." Johnny murmured sleepily.

* * *

Olyra, by now, had finally rejoined her forces in Southern China. She had walked tens of hundreds of miles on foot to get there. Of course, being a superhuman alien always helped, but the fact that she was still recovering from getting smashed through thirty buildings certainly made it harder for her.

After Olyra had explained what had happened to her commanding officers, she retired into the commander's tent, thinking.

She _should_ be worried about the upcoming assault that the Narethian army would be attempting on the Chinese barricade the next day, but in reality, she was thinking about what had happened in Paris.

The thing that had caused the Eiffel Tower to become alive...it was from the female human. It was the one thing that disturbed her. Mavis...stronger than her? A person who never trained? Impossible.

But it was true. Olyra's injuries proved that much. But the power required to complete an essence transfer to something that _big_ just seemed unreal. Even the most skilled mages in Nareth couldn't accomplish such a feat.

What made this particular human so powerful? How had she even gotten those powers in the first place? It puzzled Olyra.

Olyra shook her head. Something else was bothering her. What was it? Something was nagging at the back of her head, as if her conscience was purposely trying to annoy her.

Then Olyra's mind realized what it was. Fubuki.

What had she said? _You are nothing_. Olyra stared at the tent walls glumly. Never in her life, had she ever felt guilt. It was a feeling that was absolutely foreign to her. She never regretted anything she did. But now, for some reason...she did.

But for some reason, the idea that her sister didn't actually love her as family nagged at her. It blurred her focus. It made her...weak.

Olyra stared at her hands, breathing hard. She couldn't be weak. She trained this hard to be strong, not weak. She vowed when she was young to become the strongest. Anything that got in her way would die.

And right now, Fubuki was in her way.

Olyra clenched her fists. It looked as if she had a new target now.

* * *

Mavis woke up the next day to the sound of a bird chirping. Her eyes flew open. That wasn't right. She was underground.

But then, she realized that the chirping was coming from the origami bird that she had given life to the other day. It looked at her expectantly, as if expecting her to food it some food. It was sitting on top of Johnny's hair.

Mavis yawned and waved her hands, making the bird fly out the door. She then pulled on her clothes and walked out the bedroom, where she saw Techno already preparing breakfast.

"Ah, Miss Dracula!" said Techno, "here's your breakfast…"

A bowl of the usual breakfast was plopped in front of her. Except now, it included alfredo pasta and bow noodles, which Mavis had never seen before.

Mavis grabbed the bowl, and turned on the TV, switching from channel to channel. Most of it was just the usual propaganda, or the government-supervised news channels.

But as she was switching through some African News Channels, she came across one particular channel that made her mouth drop. It was a news channel, and the reporter was talking about a "large-scale work of vandalism".

 _Today, at 3:49 am, the farmers in a village in Morocco realized that a mountain west of the village had been vandalised. As you can see, there appears to be an english-written message burnt into the side of the mountain. Shortly after realizing this, a terrorist calling herself "Olyra" came into the village, slaughtering everyone but the women and children. This event is being called the biggest hostage crisis of the 21st century._

The reporter cut to an image of the mountain, which is what made Mavis so surprised.

On the side of the mountain, plain and clear, were the words, _Come to this location, Fubuki. If you do not, then they will die._


	70. Superiority

Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki sat around the table silently. Mavis had just finished telling Fubuki what Olyra had done, and was watching her nervously.

Fubuki looked angry, if anything. "How could my sister do something like that…." she hissed, "in my world, we were told that fighting with honor was the only way to go. Doing something like taking hostages is a stretch, even for Olyra."

"Yeah, well, Olyra's sitting in the middle of Africa right now, waiting for us to go there, and if we don't, then a bunch of innocent people are gonna die." said Mavis, "we kinda have to go."

Fubuki nodded slowly, "Yes," she said, "we do have to go. And when we do, I'll settle this, once and for all. I'll kill her, if I can."

Mavis watched Fubuki, "You're really willing to do that, aren't you?" she asked, "you really want to kill your own sister? Are you sure about that?"

Fubuki nodded. Her eyes were glowing again, "I can't wait to kill her." she said, a mad gleam appearing in her eye that Mavis had never seen before.

"Well...when do we leave then?" asked Johnny, "and should we call General Seitz? He can provide some support."

"No," intervened Fubuki, "this is a personal matter. We don't need the Germans' help. And anyways, there are innocents in the area. Having General Seitz help us might cause collateral."

Mavis nodded, "True," she said, "and we'll be leaving tonight at the latest. Olyra didn't specify a time, so we have to assume that she wants us there as soon as possible."

"Yeah," Johnny nodded in agreement, "sure, we can do that."

"Techno," Mavis called Techno over, who whizzed out from the kitchen, "get the _Overpowered_ fueled up and ready. We're flying to Africa sometime today."

"Very well," said Techno, bowing, "anything else?"

"No, that's all." said Mavis, "go and do your job, Techno.". With that, Techno whizzed out the front door.

Johnny stood up, brushing off some bread crumbs from his shirt, and murmured, "I'm gonna go take a bath real quick." he said. With that, he also walked out of the room.

Mavis was silent for a moment, before turning to Fubuki, who was sitting on the sofa opposite to her, looking at the ground glumly.

"Do you think you can actually kill your sister?" asked Mavis, looking concerned, "I mean...even if some of my family were evil, I wouldn't kill them."

Fubuki looked at her, then sighed, "Olyra isn't my family," she said firmly, "if it comes down to it, I _will_ kill her. No matter what. If I have a chance, I'll take it."

Mavis nodded, "You know, I never knew what it felt like to live your life. All my life, I've always had family to count on...even now, I still have Johnny…you, on the other hand-"

"I can count on you guys," said Fubuki, smiling a little, "I mean, you guys are my family now. Olyra hates you for that. 'Cause you've made me realize that I have more potential than being Olyra's servant all day."

Mavis smirked, "Yeah...well, welcome to the club."

There was silence for a second, which was broken after Fubuki stood up, "I'm gonna go and rest a little." she said, walking back to her sleeping quarters.

"Alright," said Mavis, nodding, "Sleep well, you'll be needing it."

* * *

George was perplexed. What was happening? His attack fleet, although small, should've been more than capable enough to take care of some 1900s era battleships. And yet, they were decimated, only one heavily-damaged destroyer returning to port. And what the captain of that ship told him was even more disturbing.

Mavis, Johnny, and their accomplice had allied themselves with the German fleet. But it made no sense. Why had they made an alliance? Surely it wasn't under the orders of Adolf Hitler? Or was it?

But either way, George had to face the facts. He was now facing a legitimate threat to everything he's built. The robot that worked for Mavis and Johnny, what his spies told him was called "Techno", could easily provide the German warships with modern-day technology and tactics that would immediately give the fleet an edge in battle.

George had lost the location of where the German Fleet was, which only angered him more. Now he had a massive fleet of heavily-armed warships, sailing around in the ocean, and he had no idea where they were.

Then there was the news regarding the alien leader, who his spies told him was called "Olyra". She had single-handedly taken an entire village hostage, and demanded a certain individual by the name of "Fubuki" to go to it, or she would kill all the villagers.

Fubuki….George thought about this for a little. He knew that Mavis and Johnny were accompanied by a third person now. Could Fubuki possibly be this person? George clasped his hands together, as he slowly begun to make a plan.

The leader of the invading Alien Army, Fubuki, and possibly Mavis and Johnny were all going towards that one town in Africa. He _could_ set up a trap for them, and get rid of them once and for all.

But what if Fubuki wasn't the accomplice? What if she was just some random person that Olyra really needed, and it actually had nothing to do with Mavis and Johnny. George would have to make a gamble in this case.

He sighed, waving his hands. Immediately, a commanding officer came up to him, "Yes, Supreme Leader?" he asked, "what do you need?"

"Prepare the fourth platoon," said George, "alert Airship fleet 1 and Airship fleet 2 as well. Equip all of them with mech suits, and tell them that they're going to Africa."

"Africa, sir?" the commanding officer looked surprised.

"Yes, Africa." grumbled George, "Hurry. And prepare my personal jet as well. I'll be going personally this time."

"But, the safety issues-"

The commanding officer was silenced with a glare from George, "I'll be equipped with the superbio enhancers you guys have built." said George, "believe me, I'll be fine."

The commanding officer looked as if he wanted to argue, but eventually gave up, "Alright," he grumbled, "I'll give out the order to prepare for battle."

"Good," said George, "This time, nobody will escape."

* * *

The _USS Iowa_ rocked lightly, as it dropped anchor outside of the coast of Southern Africa. The ride over that area had been a nasty one, with Techno having to avoid two rogue waves and an ocean hurricane.

Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki entered the helicopter, not really talking, either out of anticipation, or out of raw excitement. By now, the horrors of warfare had turned into a thrill for Mavis. She had become so adept and used to surviving and killing that warfare was nothing more than an adrenaline rush for her.

Next to Mavis, Johnny clutched his doom blades tightly. Unlike Mavis, he could still be wounded easily, and had felt the consequences of wounds multiple times before. He was more afraid than anything, but was still brave enough to go along with Mavis and Fubuki.

Then there was Fubuki, who was there only to settle things with her sister. Ever since hearing the news about what her sister had done, she had been wearing a permanent scowl on her face, as though the mere thought of her sister caused her to frown.

As the group flew towards the African Town that Olyra had told them to go to, Mavis began to feel a weird tingling sensation on the back of her spine. She shifted uncomfortably. Something wasn't right.

Her instincts were always correct.

Mavis turned back to Johnny, "Something isn't right." she said, "we forgot something. Something important."

Johnny stared at her, "What?" he asked, "we didn't forget anything. We've been through this type of stuff probably hundreds of times by now."

"Yeah...but...something doesn't...feel right." murmured Mavis, "I think…."

Mavis's eyes suddenly dilated. Her extrasensory perception kicked in. 38 degrees counterclockwise to them, there was something flying towards them...something that looked awfully familiar…

"G4!" yelled Mavis, sitting upright, "G4! He's reactivated somehow, we've got to speed this thing up-"

Mavis began punching dials and buttons, causing the helicopter's engines to go on maximum speed. "Woah, Mavis!" yelled Johnny, "what're you doing?"

"We have to avoid G4!" yelled Mavis, "We have to-"

"According to my scanners," said Techno, "G4 is nowhere near us right now. Nothing is showing up on the radar."

"But," Mavis concentrated again, using her extrasensory perception to look behind the helicopter again. G4 was nowhere in sight, "I...I thought I saw him…"

Johnny smiled, "You're too battle-hardened," he said, taking the throttle and slowing down the helicopter, "there, much more fuel-efficient."

Mavis slumped back down against her seat, slightly embarrassed this time. Her senses had truly failed her this time. Fubuki was watching her with a weird expression on her face.

"By the way, we're just about there." said Techno, "Ah, there it is…"

The tiny, unnamed town that Olyra had told them to go to appeared in front of them. In really was small. No more than fifteen one-story houses, each one about the size of a tennis court. In the center, there was a well, with laundry lines that had wet clothing hanging over them.

"Techno, land us outside the town." said Fubuki, watching the town suspiciously, "make sure to not get too near the area."

"As you wish," said Techno, "beginning landing sequence now."

The helicopter landed in a clearing off the side of the town, sending dust flying everywhere. As soon as they landed, Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki hopped out. Techno decided to stay in the helicopter, in case things got out of hand, which it probably would.

As the three of them slowly approached the town, the first thing Mavis noticed was how empty it was. It was like a ghost town. To the side, Mavis saw the massive letters that were burned into the side of the mountain, ordering Fubuki to come to this location.

As the three of them cautiously entered the town, Fubuki growled, "Where is she."

"Shhhh," Mavis put her hand on Fubuki's arm, "maybe she doesn't know we're here. Try sending up a signal. Something that would tell Olyra that you're here."

"Mmmmm, okay." said Fubuki. She put her hands onto the ground. All at once, a massive pillar of bright-green flame shot up into the air like a javelin, parting the clouds around her and creating a one-meter diameter circle of ash around herself.

After she finished doing this for a full fifteen seconds, Fubuki heard clapping. She spun around, to find Olyra standing right behind her.

"Very good, sister," said Olyra, "but you are still _weak_."

With that, Fubuki went flying through a smashed through two layers of walls, before she was able to steady herself.

"So much for honor, Olyra," hissed Fubuki, "you know nothing of being a true warrior. Nothing." Fubuki charged straight at Olyra, who easily countered her telekinetic attacks. Mavis and Johnny tried to jump in, but something prevented them from getting close. It was like an invisible wall. Mavis cursed. She should've expected something like this. Olyra wanted to face her sister alone, obviously.

Olyra lunged, but this time, Fubuki was fast enough to dodge her attack. Flying upwards, she unleashed a torrent of fire at Olyra, who dodged it easily, and threw a truck back at Fubuki.

Fubuki, rather than dodging the truck, grabbed it and twisted it into a U-shape, tossing it aside like a piece of trash. Mavis couldn't help but smile a little. Fubuki had improved alot. But was it enough…

Dozens of trucks, bricks, and blocks of dirt were thrown at Fubuki. Each one was deflected just as easily. Fubuki suddenly disappeared, reappearing behind Olyra, moving so fast that she went out of sight, and punched her hard across the face, sending Olyra flying back into a wall.

Olyra got back up, spitting blood. "You really have improved, Fubuki!" she yelled, "but perhaps you've forgotten your place as well!"

Olyra unleashed a telekinetic blast that caused Fubuki to fly back into a wall. As Fubuki struggled, trying to get up, Olyra appeared right above her. Without hesitation, Olyra activated a silver blade, stabbing downwards.

"No!" yelled Mavis.

But Fubuki wasn't completely hopeless. She managed to roll out of way, telekinetically forcing the blade in the wrong direction. Rather than impale Fubuki, the sword ended up impaling a gas line, that shot out oil into Olyra's eyes, causing her to roar with anger.

Fubuki ran at Olyra, going in for another attack, but this time, Olyra saw her coming. With something that could only be recognized as the work of an expert fighter, Olyra intercepted Fubuki's arm, and twisted it backwards, making her fall onto the ground, screaming with pain. Fubuki's right arm was broken. Olyra slowly raised her blade, aiming right for Fubuki's neck-

It was then when Mavis heard it.

 _Threat Detected._


	71. Robot's Return

Mavis was able to grab Johnny and fly straight up right as G4 unleashed a massive torrent of missiles, bullets, and plasma that incinerated the entire area they were just in. However, these missiles and bullets did manage to break the invisible barrier that Olyra had formed. Mavis winced, as she felt the lives of several hostages be lost in the explosion.

G4 stood there, his three eyes watching them closely, _Good soldiers follow orders_ , it said. Mavis frowned. That was not something she was expecting G4 out of all robots to say.

Fubuki and Olyra, meanwhile, had resumed fighting. The two of them were now a blur, flying through the air, flashes of light being the only thing that marked where they were. G4 turned his attention back to Mavis and Johnny, and fired its weapons, forcing Johnny to run behind a rock.

Mavis ran over to G4, punching it hard in the side, causing G4 to stumble back a little, but its massive bulk righted itself in time. Mavis was forced to fly back as it unleashed another torrent of bullets.

"G4, this isn't you!" yelled Mavis, "we're the good guys!"

G4 continued firing. Another set of missiles flew off from its back, flying straight for Mavis, who deflected all of them in time. Johnny ran up and stabbed G4 in the waist, but this didn't do anything. G4 just looked down at Johnny.

But he hesitated to attack. _Good soldiers follow orders_ , it said, then blasted Johnny back with its fist, causing him to land on the ground several meters away, where he got back up.

Mavis understood now. G4 wasn't completely betraying them. His programming was fighting amongst itself. Part of him was still on their side…

There was one way to bring him back without destroying him. Above them, Techno appeared, decloaking the helicopter and spraying G4 with machine gun fire. G4 returned fire using his massive anti aircraft guns, but the shields of the helicopter were enough to block all of the bullets.

Nearby, Mavis heard a scream, as Fubuki was thrown back, hitting a nearby wall, but still managed to get back up. She cursed. Fubuki wasn't going to be able to hold Olyra out forever. But Olyra seemed to think otherwise.

"Robot!" she screamed, "hurry up and kill these idiots! Hurry up!"

G4 turned to Mavis. _Good soldiers follow orders_ , it said, releasing yet another torrent of raw firepower, decimating an entire building. Mavis was able to get out of the way in time. After G4 stopped firing, Mavis concentrated. This was the only way. The only way to bring back G4.

Mavis felt her life force weakening, but concentrated as much as she could on G4. Her life essence slowly entered into him-

Mavis's eyes opened. She was breathing hard. Her eyes were red, staring at the ground. Above her, however, was G4, who stared down at her. Mavis watched G4 apprehensively. Her plan must've worked.

G4 watched her. _Threat detected_ , it said. Mavis closed her eyes. She was too weak for anything else. G4 activated its weapons, and fired.

But not at her.

Nearby, Olyra gave out a scream as a dozen missiles exploded on top of her. "You _idiot_!" she screamed at G4, "I'm the leader of the nation you were built for!". G4 watched her blankly, _Your nation is bad_ , he said.

Olyra roared in fury, blasting back Fubuki and lunging at G4. She landed on G4's body, punching him so hard that G4's armor dented. Mavis's eyes cleared when she saw Olyra. She felt something that she's only felt once before.

Hunger. Painstaking, desperate hunger.

As Olyra was attacking G4 yet again, she suddenly noticed something. She was growing weak. Her skin was withering and she was growing thinner and thinner. Olyra stared at herself, and gasped yet again as Mavis sapped out another part of her life force.

Fubuki landed next to Mavis, and immediately saw what she was doing. Olyra cried out with pain as her face turned from young and energetic, to old and crippled. Her feet began to crumble away into dust.

"Mavis…" murmured Fubuki. When Mavis didn't respond Fubuki looked at her, "Mavis!".

Mavis stopped. Her eyes returned to their normal bright blue color. In front of her, Half of Olyra's body had already crumbled to dust. The other half was old, withered, and weak. Even without her powers, Mavis could tell that Olyra wouldn't survive.

Fubuki ran over to Olyra, leaning over her sister. Olyra's face, once young and energetic, was now old and broken.

Olyra stared up at her sister, "I….did I lose….?" she whispered, "did I….really lose?"

Fubuki nodded, still staring at Olyra's face, "Yes," she said, "you lost."

There was a silence, broken by Olyra again, "Fubuki….did you love me as a sister? Give me an honest answer."

Fubuki hesitated, but shook her head, "No, sister, I didn't," she murmured, "you've done too much to fix that. I don't think you were ever family to me."

Olyra didn't say anything in response to that, "Mavis…."

Mavis walked forward looking at the person she had just doomed to die. "You...are the most powerful individual I have ever met. You've taught Fubuki how to fight well. Make sure that she becomes stronger than I do…"

Mavis stared at her, then nodded stiffly, "Okay." she said.

Olyra's head rolled to one side. Her breathing stiffened. Mavis felt her life force slowly empty away. Olyra was dead.

The five of them sat there, before Techno appeared above them, flying his helicopter, "I see you've defeated Olyra," he said, "Come on, I've detected a massive Federation assault fleet moving in. We better get outta here."

Johnny, Mavis, and Fubuki jumped into the helicopter, Johnny activating its engines. Underneath them, G4 activated his rocket boosters, following the helicopter. The five of them whizzed out of the area, right as a massive airship suddenly came out of the clouds above them.

"Shit," muttered Mavis, "Techno, activate cloaking-"

 _BOOOM_

An explosion rocked the helicopter, as its shields flashed blue around them. "Shields at 76%!" yelled Techno, "Miss Dracula, I can't cloak in right now, all of our energy is being used to absorb the enemy fire."

Sure enough, the airship had begun firing at them with everything it had. Three more missiles exploded nearby, and Mavis deflected a fourth one.

"Shields at 13%!" yelled Techno, "you guys better get out, before-"

One of the missiles made a direct collision with the back of the helicopter, causing it to spiral out of control and fall. Techno hit the ejection seat, and the next thing Mavis knew, she, Fubuki, and Johnny were flying into the air.

Mavis grabbed hold of Johnny, lightly bringing him to the ground, and Fubuki landed right next to him.

"We got to go!" yelled Mavis, "C'mon, this way!" Mavis led the way into the woods near the town, heading deep into the forest. Around them, missiles exploded, and bombs were being dropped. Fubuki got knocked back by a bomb that hit the ground near her, but quickly scrambled up, brushing dust off of herself.

After a few minutes, Techno informed the group that the airships were landing. Mavis, Fubuki, Johnny, and G4 quickly found a good hiding spot, in a tiny clearing behind a grove of trees, that was a good place to see without being seen. G4's scanners also activated, and he closely tracked any life signals that got near them.

"We have to find a way to get outta here," murmured Mavis, "we can't just sit here forever. When they find us, we'll be dead meat."

"Hmph," Johnny sat down on the grass next to her, "We can call in support from General Seitz. I mean, this town is actually pretty close to the coast of Africa."

"Nah," said Mavis, "General Seitz has enough on his hands without having to worry about us."

Fubuki didn't say much. She was mainly staring at the ground, levitating a rock around her head. She finally decided to speak, "Can't G4 fly us outta here?" she asked, "I mean, you have the ability of long-range flight, right?" she asked, turning to G4.

G4 looked down at her. _I do_ , he said, _however, my fuel cells are low. I will require a refuel in order to power up again_.

"Well, we can use the duplication stone," said Mavis, waving her hands, "then would you be able to fly us out?"

 _Sure_. said G4, _however, flying out may be a risky idea. There is a 54% chance of me getting shot out of the sky if I do attempt it._

"So...where's the duplication stone?" asked Fubuki, turning to Mavis.

"It should be somewhere here…" Mavis turned to Techno, who handed her the bag that they always carried around into battle. Inside were the relics, most of which were still unknown, and things such as extra guns and ammunition, in case Johnny lost his doom blades.

Mavis searched around in it, "It should be somewhere….where is it?"

Techno shifted uncomfortably, "Um...it may be possible that I left it on Paradise, since I was using it to duplicate food and stuff." he said nervously.

"Techno!" Mavis glared at him frustratingly. "Alright then, fine. How're we gonna get oil then? The only plausible way is by stealing it from the airships. But that's pretty risky…"

G4 stood up, _If I get oil, then I can get all of you guys back to Paradise very easily. I think it's worth the risk._

"Yeah," said Fubuki, "since when did we ever do stuff that wasn't risky? And anyways, this time we kinda have to go in. There's no other way…"

It was then when Mavis heard it. Leaves crunching under feet. The sound of soldiers drawing near. On the other end of the clearing, a group of soldiers walked in, most of them looking tired.

Mavis snapped their necks without even looking at them. With a snap of her fingers, there were 12 dead soldiers sitting in the clearing.

Fubuki stared at Mavis, "How did you-"

"Fighter's instinct," said Mavis, "Come on, nobody'll notice them. When do we get moving though? Tonight?"

"The longer we stay here, the higher the chance we'll get spot," murmured Johnny, "I think we should go right now actually. We'll board one of their airships, and refuel G4 from there. They have to have some kind of fueling mechanism."

Mavis nodded, "Alright then," she said confidently, "So here's the plan. We go onto an airship, take the fuel, and rocket out of this hellhole. Got it?"

"Easier said than done." chuckled Techno, but even he nodded. Mavis turned to Fubuki, "You okay?" she asked, her face immediately becoming concerned.

Fubuki glanced at her, "Yeah, I'm fine," she said, "just...recovering from battle, you know."

Mavis smiled lightly, "You'll eventually get used to it," she said, "we'll be leaving in five minutes." she announced to the group, "so get ready.".

* * *

General Seitz had just position himself around the portal which he had came through to enter into this world. He was already impressed by the modifications that Techno had given to his fleet. His ships moved about 5x faster, and were now equipped with "rockets" and "missiles" that were far deadlier than the ship's former armaments.

Right now, he was just waiting on the fleet that Adolf Hitler would send through. He had already been waiting for about a day, with nothing coming through. Most of his crew were relaxed and sleeping contentedly belowdecks.

But then he saw it. Light crackled through the portal, as the bow of a massive battleship came through the portal. Immediately, General Seitz ordered the attack.

Missiles, rockets, long-range railguns, energy weapons, and incineration cannons ripped through the first battleship, easily sinking it. That ship was followed by a dozen destroyers, which were each destroyed with ease as well. Now that General Seitz saw it, he realized how weak his time period was compared to the future.

As more and more ships came through the portal, each one was destroyed easily by a single missile. Soon enough, there were seventy sinking battleships and destroyers, and not a single hit on General Seitz's fleet. The Nazis who were in the water were swimming in panic, trying to survive.

General Seitz watched the survivors, as one of his commanding officers ran up to him, "Sir, there are enemy survivors in the waters. Should we go for rescue missions?"

General Seitz hesitated. But then he made up his mind. "No," he said coldly, "they wouldn't have done the same for us. We will not help them."

The commanding officer seemed surprised, but nodded anyways. "Then where should we go," he asked, "the crew is becoming restless."

General Seitz waved his hands, "Head towards the coordinates of Jaco Island," he said, "that place isn't inhabited anyways. We can set up a town there."


	72. Magnetic

The night was dark. Clouds covered up the moon, making the silver light that was cast from it muffled and dampened. Mavis, Johnny, and G4 were all in position. The plan was simple. Mavis would turn into bat form, locate exactly where the oil barrel were, then report the location. After that, G4 would accompany Mavis and Techno into the ship, where he would get refuelled, and Johnny and Fubuki would stand guard over the ship.

The two airships had landed outside the city. Most of the soldiers were outside, milling around and talking. Some of them had even set up campsites outside of town, and others were resting inside the torn-up houses.

The airship itself was guarded by some soldiers, most of whom were looking alert and kind of scared. Mavis noted that they were probably told to look out for them.

Mavis quickly turned into a bat, easily flying across the clearing, and straight into the airship without any of the soldiers noticing. As soon as she was inside, she began to look for the oil cells, using her extrasensory perception to help.

Mavis navigated her way through dozens of corridors, passing barracks, the cafeteria, even going through the bridge. She finally found a hatch that led down into the oil cells. Inside, dozens of barrels of oil, along with very dense piping made the room very claustrophobic.

She was going to fly out, when she heard someone say something behind her.

"Look, how did a bat get in all the way here?" Mavis turned around, and saw three soldiers staring at her as if she was an alien. Without hesitation, Mavis threw one against the wall, killing him instantly. She transformed back into vampire form, punching the second soldier to death. The last one ran, screaming his head off like a maniac. Within three seconds, alarms were blaring.

Shit.

Mavis concentrated, turning into a fly, whizzing through narrow gaps, avoiding the many soldiers who were now streaming into the hallways. A female voice suddenly came onto the intercom:

 _Activating Energy Pulsators_

That couldn't be good. At the other end of the hallway, an electrical field suddenly activated, flying down the hallway. It passed through the soldiers without harming them, but when it hit Mavis, it forced her back into vampire form.

Crap.

Immediately, there was yelling, as the soldiers began firing their weapons. Mavis blocked the bullets easily, but was still hit by seven or eight of them. She didn't even feel the pain, as the wounds closed up so quickly she could barely register the wound at all.

Mavis grit her teeth. The hallway was now filled to the brim with soldiers, who were firing at her continuously. Hopefully Johnny and Fubuki would follow plan B.

Outside, Johnny, Fubuki, and G4 had heard the commotion. They saw dozens of soldiers running into that airship. They heard the gunfire that was coming from it. Johnny immediately activated his doom blades, "Mavis got caught then," he growled, "time to fight."

Fubuki nodded, "Let's go….NOW!"

The four of them jumped out from the forest line, making a dash for the airship. Behind them, some soldiers yelled at them, but were quickly silenced, as G4's automatic machine guns activated and shredded them.

They ran onto the airship, and ran through the hallways, until they finally found Mavis, pinned against a wall. On all three sides, soldiers were closing in. There were already dozens of dead soldiers lying on the ground, but there were plenty more to take their places.

As soon as G4 entered, everyone's heads swiveled to him. Being an 8-foot tall war machine didn't exactly make G4 very low-profile. G4's guns immediately popped out.

 _Threat Detected_

There was yelling, as G4's massive machine guns shredded pretty much everyone in the room to smithereens apart from Mavis, Fubuki, and Johnny.

Johnny ran over to Mavis, "you okay?" he asked, "how did they find you?"

Mavis shrugged, "Some soldiers found me while I was returning from the oil cells. But I found them, come on. We can get you refuelled real quick, G4."

As the five of them ran through the now-empty hallways, killing soldiers whenever they saw one, they went through one particular room that had the words, "Engine Room" over it.

Techno paused there, "There are high amounts of magnetism radiating from there," he said, "do not go near it."

Mavis didn't exactly take note of it, still leading the group over to the engine room. When they reached the hatch, Mavis telekinetically grabbed a barrel of oil and set it down in front of G4.

"Drink up," she said, "we need to hurry, before they send more soldiers."

A small compartment slid open on G4's side, and a tube came out. G4 dunked the tube into the oil, and soon it was receding quickly.

 _Threat Detected_

Without even moving, two machine guns popped out of G4's shoulders, turned around, and shot three soldiers who just ran out on the other end of the hallway, killing them instantly.

"Hurry," said Mavis, "more are coming!"

Sure enough, this time, a small mech walked through on the other end of the hallway. G4's focus returned to getting the oil in him as quickly as possible. The Mech charged the five of them, opening fire with guns that were mounted on its shoulders and arms.

Mavis telekinetically threw this mech back, crushing the entire mech into something smaller than a dime. Johnny activated his doom blade and charged forward, going face to face with a second mech that appeared. Johnny dodged its first swing, and chopped off the mech's legs, destroying it.

G4 finally retracted the oil extraction tube. _Oil extraction complete_ , he said, _let's go_.

Before they could do anything, however, an entire squadron of soldiers lined up on the other end, firing their guns. Some guy on the intercom was yelling at them to surrender.

"Oh, hell no." said Fubuki. She yelled, unleashing a stream of fire that burnt every soldier in that hallway to a crisp. The five of them ran through the many hallways, before suddenly-

 _BOOOM_

A huge mech, even larger than G4, literally punched right through the wall to the right of Johnny. The force of this was enough to send him flying to the other side, where he flew right through a door.

The door that Techno had warned had high amounts of magnetism.

Immediately, G4 launched missiles at the mech, forcing it to go onto the defensive. Techno and Mavis both flew over to Johnny, grabbing him telekinetically and pulling him out.

"Is he okay?" asked Mavis, as Fubuki and G4 fought the massive mech behind them, "is he alive?"

Techno was reading his vitals, "He is still alive, but only just." said Techno, "we must bring him back to the island, so I can care for him properly."

Mavis nodded. Turning to the mech, she waved her hands, causing the mech to be crushed under intense gravitational manipulation, until whoever the pilot was finally died.

The four of them, along with an unconscious Johnny, ran out of the airship. Outside, tanks and soldiers were waiting for them. They fired, and G4 quickly covered for Mavis, Fubuki, and Johnny, using his body as a shield. The shells didn't even make a dent on G4's battle armor.

But the tanks didn't stop. They continued firing, pounding G4 with more and more fire. G4 returned fire, blowing up several tanks, but it wasn't enough. Behind the tanks, artillery also lobbed shells at them, causing the area they were standing in to become a quagmire of mud and dirt.

Next to Mavis, she heard Fubuki cry out in pain as a bullet flew through her shoulder. Mavis growled, telekinetically hurling rocks and tanks at the enemy lines, trying to destroy them, but whatever she did wasn't enough. There were simply too many of the enemy, and too few of them.

But then, something happened. The tanks stopped firing, and began to move erratically and illogically, ramming into each other. Guns started randomly jamming and exploding on their owners. One of the artillery guns behind the tanks straight-up exploded.

Mavis stared in wonder, as the entire enemy force was thrown into disarray by some unknown force that was messing up their weapons and vehicles.

Mavis turned around to look at Johnny, but found him already sitting up, rubbing his head and also staring at the enemy soldiers. His eyes found Mavis's, and he gulped.

"I...uh...I think I did that."

* * *

A few hours later…

"So tell me, what happened again?" asked Mavis, for about the fifth time, as she listened to Johnny talk.

"Okay, last time," said Johnny, rolling his eyes, "All I remember is waking up, and seeing all of us pinned down by tanks and artillery and crap, and I just...wanted to make it all stop. And it did."

Mavis plopped back down onto the sofa. At the current moment, they were sitting in the _Overpowered_. G4 was in sleep mode, and Mavis and Fubuki were interrogating Johnny on whatever just happened.

"I don't know what happened, alright?" said Johnny, "stop staring at me like that, Techno!"

Techno sighed, "I believe that I have the answer to why Johnny managed to bring the enemy forces into disarray," he said, "when he entered into the magnetic room, he somehow managed to physically incorporate the magnetism into his own body. Right now, your body is resonating fourteen gigateslas. That is the equivalent of fourteen magnetars, and should be enough to actually destroy the entire world. But it's somehow all contained within your body. I believe that you somehow managed to use this magnetism to disrupt the enemy electronics in the battle."

"So…" Johnny stared at his own hands, "you're saying that I have a….power? Like a legit power that I can use and stuff?"

"It would appear this way, yes." said Techno blankly.

Slowly a grin began to form on Johnny's face. "That's…." he struggled to find the word, "awesome! I can finally actually do cool stuff!"

Mavis also sighed with relief. She was worried that Johnny had somehow harmed himself in some way by doing what he did, but now, she knew it was just a new power that was forming in him.

"Alright…" she murmured, "as long as you're okay, Johnny." to prove her point, she kissed Johnny quickly, before turning back to Techno, "Alright, since we've got _that_ figured out, lets focus on getting back to Paradise."

As the _Overpowered_ sailed towards Paradise, Johnny began testing his powers out.

"Turn off." he said to the light. The light flickered, then turned off. "Turn on." he said, focusing a little more. The light turned on without delay this time.

Johnny grinned, "This is a pretty cool power," he said, "hopefully it can be useful to us."

Fubuki grinned, "it'll be good," she said, "we always need someone who can shut off electronics, since that's pretty much what George's government is running off of."

Johnny nodded, then stood up, "Well, I'll head off below decks to rest," he said, "goodnight."

With that, Johnny retired to a stateroom downstairs. Mavis followed suit, standing up and making sure that Techno was bringing them the fastest way back home. After doing this, she also went downstairs.

Fubuki sighed, lying down on the sofa in the stateroom. Now that Olyra was gone, maybe she could actually live a life without constant fear. Maybe she could grow stronger without the fear that someone else would be there to take it all from her.

Fubuki sighed, and fell asleep on the sofa, snoring lightly.

* * *

General Seitz was tired. Very tired. He had just finished constructing his massive fort on Joca Island. All the battleships and destroyers were docked around the relatively small island, and already, dozens of wooden cabins and tents had been erected.

General Seitz was preparing for a campaign, that would lead him around South America. He believed that with his new technology, he would be able to conquer some of the less-developed areas that the modern government had conquered.

He would start with Brazil, then make his way up, going through the East Coast, until he reached northern Canada.

As for Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki, he had received no word from them, so he assumed that they didn't need help. He instead began to focus on the plans he had to fight the South Americans.

He kind of regretted his decision of sailing to South America. Right now, his men seemed so relax, so _happy_. They finally had food to eat, after Techno duplicated his food supplies with the duplication stone, and they had a home to live in now as well.

But this was the reality of warfare. If General Seitz didn't attack, then the government would first. He wasn't willing to let the government do this. He already felt a responsibility towards his men, being the one who officially committed treason against the Third Reich first. If any of his crew died, it was because of him.

General Seitz straightened himself. Tomorrow, they would begin the attack. No matter what the circumstances were.


	73. Scars of War

Mavis woke up the next day, in the stateroom. Her head was resting on Johnny's chest, which was rising and falling steadily. Mavis dragged herself up, looking out the window. Outside, the sun was slowly rising over the horizon. Mavis glanced at the clock that was sitting on the table next to the bed. It read 6:34 am. Pretty late, actually.

Next to Mavis, she heard Johnny grunt a little, "Ugh...Mavis, you awake?". She turned around to find Johnny sitting up groggily. "Yeah, I'm awake." said Mavis, kissing Johnny, "you feeling alright?"

"Yeah…" mumbled Johnny, looking at the clock, "yeah, we woke up a little late today…" he muttered, "wait a second, gotta see if I can do this…"

Johnny waved his hands, and the lights above them turned on. He grinned, "I'm getting good at this." he said happily, throwing on his clothes, "come on, Mavis." he said, marching out of the stateroom, "let's go to the bridge."

The two of them made their way up to the bridge, where Techno was steering the ship towards Paradise. In front of them, the island slowly came into view, poking out of the edge of the horizon. Fubuki wasn't in the bridge, so Mavis made the assumption that she was still sleeping.

As soon as Johnny entered the ship, Techno whizzed over, scanning Johnny. "Woah!" said Johnny, backing up, "why so tense, Techno?"

"I'm just making sure that your vitals are functioning properly," said Techno hurriedly, "the intense magnetism that your body is containing may harm some of your organs, which, if not treated properly, can result in death."

Johnny sighed, allowing himself to be brought over to a chair nearby, where Techno scanned him a few more times. After satisfying himself with this, Techno said, "Hmph….it seems alright...for now."

Techno returned back to the wheel, guiding the ship towards Paradise. A few minutes later, Fubuki appeared on the bridge, rubbing her eyes. "We nearly there yet?" she asked, sitting down at the front of the bridge, "I'm starting to get sick of staring at open water for hours on end…"

Mavis grinned, patting Fubuki on the back, "Don't worry," she said, "the island's right there, and anyways, life could be worse."

"That is true," Fubuki said, yawning a little, "I think we should take a day off, you know...just have a day that doesn't involve blowing stuff up or planning to blow stuff up."

"Yeah, we always try to do that," mumbled Mavis, "but then some idiot always forces us to act in the end. Watch and see. Something stupid is gonna happen and we're gonna have to pack our bags again."

Fubuki rolled her eyes, resting her head on a cushion, "Hopefully," she murmured, "that idiot doesn't show up today, 'cause I _really_ don't want to fight today."

Johnny wasn't really listening to the conversation. He was twiddling his thumbs, trying to hardwire his cellphone. As Mavis watched, she saw Johnny's phone fizzle out.

"Well, I don't want to fight either," said Mavis, "but in this world, we have no choice. We either fight, or we die. That's how it works nowadays."

Fubuki was silent for a second, then she said, "We didn't have to go fight the last few times…"

Mavis paused. Fubuki had a point. She didn't have to confront Olyra. She didn't have to attempt to save the Eiffel Tower. She didn't have to try to fight George. If she just hid on Paradise all day, then nobody would ever find her.

"We…" Mavis hesitated, "listen, Fubuki, we have a responsibility as well. As the only people on the surface of the planet who knows what's going on. We have to fight. If we don't….then...all is lost."

Fubuki watched Mavis, "You know," she murmured, "My world could use a person like you. You're an expert fighter, and you're honor-driven. Unlike my sister.". Mavis noted the bitterness in Fubuki's voice when she said the word _sister_.

Mavis sat down next to Fubuki, "Listen….I'm sorry about what I did to your sister. I...I think I put her through more pain than she deserved."

Fubuki stared at the wall, "She deserved every ounce of that pain." she said, "she didn't care for me in the end. She didn't care for any of us."

Mavis didn't reply, still watching Paradise draw closer and closer, "Tell me," she said, "what do you think of Earth? How is it here, compared to your world?"

Fubuki laughed, "it's so much better here," she said, "so much beauty in this world, even with George trying to take over the world and whatnot. Look at your island for example. Extraordinary."

Mavis had to agree with Fubuki on that one. Paradise was a pretty awesome island. It was her home now. She regarded it as her permanent residence by now. The one place the government would never find them. The one place she felt safe.

A few minutes later, Mavis, Johnny, Fubuki, and G4 were back on the island. G4 informed the three of them that he was going to talk to Techno about some upgrades on his armaments, which he seemed excited about. Fubuki and Mavis did some combat training, while Johnny went downstairs to cook dinner for them, since Techno wasn't there to take care of the cooking.

It seemed pretty normal. Almost too normal.

* * *

George's life was going much easier than usual, surprisingly. His biggest problem, the alien invasion, had come to an abrupt halt just the other day, for some reason. The aliens had withdrawn, apparently frightened by something.

After beating the retreating aliens back through their portal, George shut down the portal, effectively closing one of the two portals in the world. There still remained a second one, in an unknown area somewhere in the world, but at the current moment, it was of no issue for him.

The Germans, however, were beginning to become annoying. They had begun a series of lightning attacks off the coast of South America, destroying small coastal towns and blowing up factories. They definitely had more advanced technology, as not only were they able to damage the navy ships George sent to pursue them, they were actually able to completely sink some of them.

George sighed. These Germans had caused enough trouble. It was time to end them, once and for all. He ordered Airship Fleets seven and eight to immediately give chase to the German Fleet, with orders to sink and kill everyone, no survivors.

* * *

As Fubuki was defeated yet again in combat training, she decided to call a break. Rubbing her back from all the times she was thrown to the ground with telekinesis, the two of them retreated into headquarters.

"You know, Fubuki, you're really improving." said Mavis, "A few more days and you might actually get telekinetic healing down."

Fubuki grinned. Telekinetic healing had been one power she had always wanted to learn over all others. She had seen Mavis use it with amazing efficiency, and wanted to know how to do it herself.

"Great," she said promptly, "that way, if I get shot, I won't be _completely_ out of the battle, you know…"

Mavis smiled, "You're a quick learner," she said, "come on, lets eat dinner real quick, Johnny's probably already done cooking…"

The two of them walked down to headquarters, where the table was already laden with tomato soup, pasta, and fish. Johnny was a surprisingly good cook. He even added a specific type of cheese to the pasta, which added a very italian taste to it.

"Oh hey," he said, when he saw Mavis and Fubuki enter the room, "you guys done with combat training already? It usually takes longer."

"Yeah, we're done." said Mavis, "nice cooking," she commented, "I never knew you liked to make food, out of all things."

Johnny shrugged, "I was a boy scout for a long time," he muttered, "cooking is a natural ability to me now. Here, have some rice.". With that, Johnny gave Mavis a bowl of rice, along with Fubuki.

That was another thing Mavis noticed. Her appetite for human food had grown significantly better. She was actually able to enjoy most of the food given to her by now. She even thought that Lamb Stew tasted good.

"Johnny, you really have to teach me how to cook one day." said Mavis, "'cause this is...beyond extraordinary. Honestly."

Johnny smiled, turning slightly red, "I'm not _that_ good," he said, "and anyways, it wasn't me who learned it on my own. It was my dad who taught me."

Johnny winced, remembering his dad. His dad, who was now a pile of charcoal sitting at the bottom of a crater. Fubuki watched him carefully, and made the correct assumption that something bad had happened to Johnny's dad when he began his career as an unofficial hero.

"I'm sorry," said Fubuki, "but...what happened to your family? You two never exactly talk about it…"

Johnny sighed. Clearly, he didn't want to talk about this subject. But he wasn't going to hide it forever. "My family, along with millions of other people, died at the hands of the government," said Johnny, "at the hands of the Supreme Leader, to be exact."

"Oh…" Fubuki nodded. Mavis had told her about the Supreme Leader, "and what happened to him?"

"Tiberius killed him," finished Mavis, "and...I killed Tiberius. He deserved it. Tiberius...killed Johnny. Damn, that sounds weird."

Johnny grinned, "I'm the only person on the planet who has the right to say that I've died before," he said, wearing a large smile, "but it's all thanks to you guys, of course, so I'm not gonna brag about that…"

As Johnny said that, he accidently shocked his food, burning his beef. "Ack...that sucks." muttered Johnny, staring at his pitch-black roast beef, "Um...any of you guys want overcooked beef?"

"You don't seem to have that much control over your power," said Mavis, grinning, "you only seem to have random spikes of it at random times. Maybe you need to develop them a little. Kinda like telekinesis."

"Yeah…" Johnny plopped back down onto the chair he was sitting in, "whatever. I'll work on that afterwards. Right now, though-"

Techno whizzed into the room. His display was glowing bright red, which was never good, and he said, "I'm sorry to disturb you, but I have some very important news to tell you guys about."

Mavis glanced at Fubuki, who sighed, "Yeah?" asked Mavis, "and what is that?"

"The aliens that Olyra was leading have retreated!" said Techno, "they went back through the portal, under heavy fire from George, and the government shut the portal down. They must've received news that Olyra was dead, and therefore they couldn't continue."

Mavis nodded, "Well, that's good news," she said, "anything else?"

"Apart from that, General Seitz has begun a naval campaign in the South Atlantic," said Techno, "it's actually been going pretty well for them. They've managed to destroy 16 factory cities by now. However, George has them currently pinned down in the Gulf of Mexico."

Mavis hesitated, "Well...they haven't called us yet, so they might have a plan…"

"Well, I didn't come here to suggest, I only came here to report," said Techno, "alright, bye." with that, Techno whizzed out of the room.

Mavis glanced at Fubuki, then sighed, "Nothing too bad," she said, "at least, nothing that requires our attention."

Fubuki didn't say anything at first, she stabbed a tomato and swallowed it, "damn," she murmured, "I never when I woke up back in Germany that I would end up working with you guys permanently."

Mavis glanced at Johnny. Both of them knew what the other was thinking. _Hopefully you work with us permanently_. Fubuki didn't notice this, and she continued to drink her tomato soup. Fubuki had an odd taste for tomatoes.

"So tell me," said Fubuki, as she was eating, "why did you guys get pulled into this in the first place again? I know Mavis already told me but I've forgotten."

"Well…" Mavis's memory worked hard. She couldn't even quite remember what it was. Then her memory fixed on that moment. "We...we were hiking somewhere, and the government had launched a missile at a town….and then when we went there to help the survivors, a buncha soldiers came out to try to kill us."

"Oh…." Fubuki ate some more, "that changed your life pretty badly, didn't it? But a few soldiers should've been easy for you."

Mavis thought back to that time. It _was_ difficult to kill those soldiers. But now, she could kill without trying. She was, in all aspects, the ideal soldier. She could kill, she could stay alive, and she could think.

Johnny sighed, "Let's _not_ talk about our past," he said, "I'm gonna go and sleep now. See you guys in the morning.". With that, he retreated back into his bedroom.

Mavis sighed as she watched Johnny's back disappear behind the door. Fubuki shifted uncomfortably, "I didn't mean to-"

"Naw, it's fine." said Mavis, her eyes glowing a little, "just...our past is complicated, alright? We always try to do the right thing, but everyone perceives it as terrorism."

Fubuki nodded, "Alright," she said, "I'll...try to avoid that subject…"

It was then when Techno burst into the room yet again. This time, he was holding a phone. A phone that was vibrating. "There's a phone call!" said Techno urgently, "it's from General Seitz."


	74. Abandoned

Turns out, it wasn't a phone call. It was actually a voicemail, which only made Mavis even more worried. On the other end, General Seitz's voice was panicked. In the background, there were explosions and the sound of gunfire. Clearly, he was in the middle of a battle right now.

General Seitz's voice was grainy, but still understandable. He was yelling into the phone, clearly trying to drown out the sound of the battle.

 _We're trapped on the Gulf of Mexico, coordinates 26.4 -94.15. We're in desperate need of help. Half of the fleet's been demolished by now. George sent some kind of Airship that begun to drop destroyers into the water, right on top of us. They took us by surprise. I'll only be able to hold out for another day at maximum. If you can reach us in time, we might be able to develop a strategy to push them back._

The voicemail cut out from there. Fubuki sighed, laying back down, "Now what?" she asked, "we have an alliance to honor. We can't just leave them to die in the Gulf of Mexico."

Mavis nodded slowly, "Yeah," she said, "we have to go. Johnny! Get over here, we have something to show you…"

Johnny groggily poked his head out the bedroom doors. He saw the phone and immediately knew what was happening. Johnny ran over, "What's General Seitz called us for?" he asked cautiously.

"He's trapped in the Gulf of Mexico," said Mavis, hitting the play button on the phone, "and he's in trouble too. George is pushing right now. Apparently he won't be able to hold on for much longer."

As Johnny listened to the recording, his expression turned stonier and stonier. When it finally ended, Johnny sighed, "Alright...so….we're gonna go, right? We're gonna fight?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "we have an alliance to honor. Can't just throw them out, can we?" as she was saying this, she turned to Techno, "Prep the _Overpowered_ and the _USS Iowa_ for battle." she said.

Techno nodded and whizzed out of the room, going to refuel the two ships.

Johnny yawned, and Mavis realized how tired they all were. They had literally just returned from fighting Olyra, now they were heading out again to fight George. Mavis patted Johnny on the back, "Don't worry," she said, "we'll get some rest on the _USS Iowa_."

Johnny smiled a little, "Yeah, I was hoping for that," he said, "I just need some sleep, honestly. And now, maybe I can test out my new powers on George's ships." he said, grinning, "I found a way to create electricity with my powers."

"Nice," said Mavis, nodding. Personally, she wasn't too tired. She had developed some sort of battle sense that made her alert whenever she was in battle, regardless of sleep deprivation.

Techno's voice suddenly came onto the intercom, "The _USS Iowa_ is ready for entry," he said, "please begin boarding now. G4 has been woken up from sleep mode."

Sure enough, in the corner, G4 activated. Without even asking questions, he marched over to the door, opening it and going outside. Mavis, Fubuki, and Johnny quickly followed him outside, where Fubuki and Mavis flew over to the ship, Mavis telekinetically carrying Johnny.

The four of them were soon on the _USS Iowa_. Techno started up the engines, and they were then quickly whizzing over the surface of the water, heading straight for the Gulf of Mexico. Right next to the _USS Iowa_ was the _Overpowered_ , following them to the upcoming battle.

As Mavis watched Paradise recede behind her, she made a mental note to take a break from battle for at least three days when she next came back to the island. If she ever came back at all, which was always a worry.

Next to her, Johnny had already fallen asleep on a sofa, and Fubuki had left the bridge, heading downstairs into a stateroom. Mavis sighed. She would have to get some sleep as well. She _was_ tired.

Mavis laid down on one of the sofas on the other end of the bridge. She didn't think that she was tired, but as soon as her head hit the pillow, she fell asleep instantly.

* * *

"Bombers incoming! Brace for impact!" General Seitz heard one of his men yell, as another wave of bombers swooped in on his flagship. Two of the five bombers were shot down. One bomb made a hit on the deck, starting a fire.

"78 degrees starboard side, aim our cannons at the target directly to our left!" yelled General Seitz, he then picked up his phone, which was ringing, "...yes, yes, I understand that there are 37 destroyers heading for our position!" he yelled, "hold them out...Captain Ludendorff, deploy your bombers and torpedo planes, target the enemy flagship…"

Another shell collided with the hull of the flagship, causing General Seitz to stumble, "Sir, we're receiving minor flooding belowdecks!" said one of his officers. "Well, get our repair crews on it," said General Seitz impatiently, " _Scharnhorst_ , return fire to targets 12 degrees to your starboard side, yes, yes, fire your torpedoes as well!"

One of George's destroyers came too close to General Seitz's ship, "FIRE!" yelled General Seitz, "FIRE NOW!"

The main batteries opened fire, decimating the enemy destroyer, completely disintegrating it. "Reload, open fire at coordinates A17," said General Seitz, a little calmer. The ship shook again, as it withstood another bomb, "Dang It, officer, get one of our electrical engineers to fix the anti aircraft guns. Now."

Nearby, one of General Seitz's destroyers exploded, as it received a direct torpedo hit. "Sir, the _Seydlitz_ is dead in the water!" yelled one of his officers, "and...it looks as if the _Musashi_ just received a direct hit as well!"

General Seitz cursed. This was the last thing he needed. He was used to organized naval warfare, not close-range warfare. Right now, his ships were completely in disarray. There were Federation ships everywhere.

"Sir, our main batteries are reloaded." said one of the officers, "should we open fire?"

"Open fire on the nearest target," said General Seitz, "target their bridge."

The _Tirpitz_ rotated one of its cannons and fired. Most of the shots missed, but one made a direct collision with the enemy bridge, probably killing the captain and everyone else in it.

General Seitz flew against the wall again as another torpedo made a direct hit with the _Tirpitz_. "Damage report!" he yelled, as he dragged himself back up, "get repair crews down there!"

"The torpedo has caused major flooding, disabled two of our main batteries, and cut our speed by 25%." said one of the officers, "our repair crews are trying our best, but-"

"Tell them to fix it," growled General Seitz, "Keep firing with our other main batteries. If we can, launch missiles."

The Tomahawk missiles, which were just reloaded, fired again, launching a dozen high-explosive long-range missiles towards the enemy destroyers in the back. There were flashes of light, as the destroyer anti-missile guns activated, cutting down several of the missiles. In the end, four of the twelve tomahawks hit. The main batteries also fired, launching four shells at the enemy. Two of them hit, one bouncing off of the hull of a ship, and the other setting the deck of a corvette on fire.

Suddenly, there was a massive explosion, as the front gun turrets literally exploded, turning into a pile of charcoal in a few seconds.

"What the hell was that?" asked General Seitz, "return fire!"

"Sir, we believe we were hit with...what Techno told us was called a railgun." said one of the officers, "returning fire."

The _Tirpitz_ returned fire. This time, none of the shells hit, but one clipped the edge of an enemy destroyer's bridge, destroying its radar. Dozens of shells bounced off of the _Tirpitz's_ hull, and one exploded on deck, killing a few of his crew members.

General Seitz stared at the horizon, which was now covered with the bodies of dead sailors and the wreckage of countless of Naval warships.

 _Come on, Mavis...any time around now would be great._

* * *

Mavis woke up to the sound of explosions in the distance. Her eyes flew open, adjusting to see Fubuki and Johnny already awake, watching the bridge windows. Mavis scrambled up, "What's going on?" she asked, startling Johnny and Fubuki.

"We're drawing close to the battle," said Johnny, "and...uh...it doesn't look good for General Seitz. We're going to have to fight our way through alot of crap to get to him."

Mavis looked through the windows, and immediately saw the battle. It was probably the worst naval battle she's ever seen. Hundreds of wreckages, already sinking. The water was literally light red with blood. The bodies of thousands of sailors floated in the water.

Further in, the battle was looking bad. There was no organized formation whatsoever. The Federation Ships and the Germans Ships were literally in point-blank combat. Mavis immediately spotted the _Tirpitz_. It had several dents in its hull, its deck was on fire, and two of its four guns appeared to have been disabled.

Mavis's hands began to glow, "Let's trash this place." she said. G4, who was standing behind her, looked down at her, _I can do that_ , he said.

"Yeah, well, we're all going in," said Mavis, "come on, let's go!". Techno nodded, launching dozens of long-range missiles at the enemy destroyers. These missiles were equipped with cloaking devices, that made them impossible to lock onto.

All the missiles hit.

Immediately, 14 enemy destroyers were instantly vaporized in the initial explosion, 7 others being heavily damaged. "Direct hit," said Techno, "wait a second…"

There was a moment of silence, then a massive explosion rocked the entire ship. Mavis was thrown back against a wall, but quickly got up.

"That was a railgun," said Techno, "luckily, our shields managed to absorb most of the hit, so we're fine...returning fire now. Main cannons have just fired."

Nearby, an enemy corvette exploded as the _USS Iowa_ 's guns shredded it to pieces. Mavis saw the _Tirpitz_ receive another torpedo explosion. The ship was not going to survive for much longer.

Mavis had to do something. She made a promise to General Seitz. She ran out of the bridge, followed by Fubuki, and began to fly. Underneath her, Fubuki followed, and behind Fubuki, rising shakily, was….Johnny?

"How're you doing that?" asked Mavis, yelling over the gunfire, "how're you flying? I thought you only had control over magnetics!"

"I don't know!" yelled Johnny, "I guess magnetic flight is a thing then!"

Mavis hesitated. She didn't want Johnny to get killed while testing out his new flight, but at the same time, she had a job to complete. Mavis nodded, "Alright, just don't get yourself killed!" she yelled, "come on!"

The four of them, including G4, flew off towards the _Tirpitz_. As they passed by the dozens of warships that were fighting, Mavis heard the Germans cheer as they saw them pass. They were getting hopeful. Maybe this would encourage them to fight on.

Mavis landed on the deck of the warship first, followed by Fubuki, then G4, then Johnny. G4 turned to the enemy warships. _Incineration Cannons activating_ , it said, _Eliminating threats_.

It launched beams of light that cut through the enemy warships like butter, melting more and more warships. G4 also activated his anti-aircraft guns, blowing planes out of the sky easily.

It was then when Mavis saw it. A tomahawk missile, heading straight for the _Tirpitz._ Mavis only had enough time to force it to not go her way, forcing it into the bridge instead-

 _BOOOOOM_

Mavis had never been in the explosion of a tomahawk missile. She had always had the protection of shields, or be lucky enough to be the one firing the missile. But now, she knew why they were so feared.

The oxygen was sucked right out of the air, causing Mavis to gag temporarily. Flames flew out, causing the entire warship to become a firework display of red, orange, and black. But it was then when Mavis remembered something.

General Seitz.

Mavis flew up to the bridge. The glass windows were broken, and the interior of the bridge was completely burnt to carbon. Mavis quickly telekinetically took out all the fire, and flew in. She found General Seitz's body. Burnt, completely turned into a sculpture of charcoal.

Mavis didn't know what to feel. She wasn't _sad_. She didn't know General Seitz too well, but she was certainly upset. Her one ally in this world, dead.

Mavis clambered out of the bridge, jumping down onto the deck, "General Seitz is dead." she announced. At first, nobody said anything, then Johnny broke the silence, "Well," he said, "come on, we can't just sit here all day. Let's get outta here."

Mavis nodded, and all four of them began to fly back to the _USS Iowa_. When they landed on its bridge, however-

"You gotta be _kidding_ me." said Johnny, groaning in frustration. In front of the _USS Iowa_ , a group of six destroyers had formed a literal barrier, blocking off their path. The shields of the _USS Iowa_ was the only thing that was preventing the ship from blowing up.

"I got this." said Mavis. Johnny glanced over to her. "What're you gonna do?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Watch this." said Mavis, raising her arms and closing her eyes. At first, Johnny didn't see what was happening, then, he noticed something. The destroyers who were blocking them off...were...rising?

At first, Johnny couldn't believe his eyes. All six destroyers were lifted high into the air. Techno took the initiative from there, steering the _USS Iowa_ down underneath the destroyers. After they were past the barricade, Mavis threw the destroyers back into the water, purposely using more force to cause holes to tear into the deck, so that the destroyers would start flooding.

Mavis opened her eyes. Behind them, the battle still raged. The Germans would be defeated in this battle. They might've escaped, but Mavis knew that even if she tried, she wouldn't be able to help the Germans. They had been doomed from the start.

What Mavis failed to notice were the two massive airships that were now pursuing her.


	75. Dark Side

It was G4 who noticed the airships first. One of his three eyes swiveled up, _Threat Detected_ , he warned. His massive incineration cannons pointed upwards, firing, but the shells weren't enough to punch through the thick airship armor.

 _Energy buildup detected,_ said G4, _recommend immediate evasion_. "What's that supposed to mean?" yelled Johnny, watching the airships anxiously, "what does 'energy build up' mean?"

G4 quickly responded, _it means that they're about to blow us up._ He said nonchalantly.

Johnny watched fearfully as the airships fired. Mavis telekinetically covered for the _USS Iowa_ , driving the shells off course and into the water. The _Overpowered_ was struck, and exploded, sending pieces of it flying everywhere.

That came as a blow to Mavis. She winced. That was one of her ships that just blew up. One of the two ships that she controlled. A single hit was able to completely destroy it, with shields and everything.

"If we get hit once, we're all dead!" yelled Johnny, "dang it, I already regret going along with this operation." A shell landed right next to the _USS Iowa_ , sending a 14-foot plume of water landing on the deck.

"Enemy fire detected," warned Techno, "brace for potential impact."

"If it collides, we won't even be here to brace for anything." growled Johnny, but he grabbed a seat nearby too, right as Mavis telekinetically deflected the shells. But then, the ship suddenly slowed down, until it grinded to a halt. Johnny looked hesitantly at Techno, "Uh…"

"It appears as if one of the shells clipped the rudders," said Techno, "we're dead in the water right now. I highly suggest getting out."

There was silence for a second, broken by Mavis, "Well, come on!" she said urgently, "lets get going!"

Johnny, Mavis, and Fubuki all ran onto the deck, Mavis shoving Techno into her bag, and flew up. Behind them, the _USS Iowa_ exploded. The explosion itself was enough to cause Johnny's concentration to slip, forcing him to lose control and crash into the water.

"Johnny!" Mavis dived, grabbing Johnny by the arms and pulling him up, "you alright? Fubuki, keep going towards the shoreline, we have to-"

 _BOOOM_

Whatever was left of the _USS Iowa_ was completely destroyed, as a wave of shells bombarded it. When the flashes of light dimmed, nothing was left of the ship. Nothing except…

"Oh no…" murmured Fubuki, as she watched the water, "Oh...no…."

It was G4. It appeared that he had managed to take off from the ship, but he had received a direct hit from one of the shells. His front side was completely mangled and ruined. Wires were popping out of him from all angles, and electricity was crackling. He was somehow floating on the water, despite his massive stature.

Mavis flew down to him, lifting him out of the water telekinetically. G4 was in a worse state than he had first appeared in. His entire lower body had been cut off, and all that was left was his upper body, which was completely destroyed by now. Out of his three eyes, only one was still shining.

The one eye found Mavis. _Status….critical….,_ said G4, as a spark flew out of his previously-armored chest plating, _Goodbye...allies…_

G4's last eye flickered out, and his body became limp. Mavis let him sink, watching him slowly disappear beneath the waves, until he was completely out of sight.

There was silence for a second. Mavis didn't know what to feel. She had lost General Seitz, her two ships, and now, had lost G4. One thought ran through her mind. Revenge.

Mavis looked up. Her eyes were solid black now. They were empty of emotion. Empty of empathy. Empty of mercy. Fubuki and Johnny stared at her. Johnny hesitated, "Um...Mavis…"

Mavis vanished, flying straight for the airships. She went so fast, she left at least a hundred afterimages, which flickered in and out. "MAVIS!" yelled Johnny, launching himself up and trying to get to her, "Mavis! Come back!"

Mavis didn't care. She wanted revenge. She flew to the airship, punching her way right through the 20-foot thick nanosphere armor, and blasting her way onto the ship. Without bothering to even look for a map or some sort of way to navigate, Mavis located the bridge, which was twenty floors above her.

She brought her hand back and punched, cleaving a hole straight through the twenty floors, making a hole appear right in the center of the bridge. Less than a nanosecond later, Mavis had the captain's neck in a firm grip, and everyone else in the bridge was dead.

Mavis growled at the captain. He was young, probably only in his twenties. Maybe he had a family. Maybe he had children to go back to.

That only made it more satisfying to kill him. The satisfaction that came from the suffering of others. Revenge.

Mavis stared at the captain right in the eyes, "The whereabouts of George," she said, "Where."

"He's in...Shanghai right now!" gasped the captain. His feet began to crumble to dust, "please...whatever you want...I'll do…."

Mavis didn't care. Not only was this captain weak and incompetent, he was also weak-willed and easy to bend. Fitting, for someone of his kind. The captain gasped again, as his chest slowly crumbled to dust, then his neck, then his face.

Mavis didn't hesitate. She smashed the window of the bridge, jumping out yet again. She flew to the second airship, smashing her way onto their bridge. There was a yell, and screams, and suddenly, silence, as everyone in the ship was killed. Mavis landed back onto the ground, right as Johnny and Fubuki had flown halfway to the first ship.

Mavis stood there, on the sand at the beach. Behind her, the two destroyed airships crashed into the ocean. For some reason, they had massive, 30-meter holes in them. Mavis didn't remember punching those. Maybe she did. Mavis didn't remember.

As she stared at the ground, barely even breathing, Fubuki and Johnny noticed her, and flew down to her. Johnny landed right next to Mavis, grabbing her arm and staring at her, "Mavis, you…"

There was some hesitation, as the one of the airships exploded behind him, but he decided to finish the sentence, "are you okay?"

Mavis didn't look at him. "I won't be fine until we kill George." she said, "until then, no, I am not fine."

Johnny sighed, "Well...how do we do that, anyways?" he asked, "we don't know where he is, or what he's planning, or anything really."

"I know he's in Shanghai." said Mavis. Her eyes were still solid pits of black, "I found that out while…. _talking_ to one of the airship captains."

"Ah...I see…" murmured Johnny, "Mavis, come on, we gotta get outta here. The Federation is gonna be after us any moment right now. We're gonna have to move to avoid them. We can fetch a ride to Shanghai later."

Mavis didn't respond. She just stared at the water in front of her. "Hey, Mavis." Johnny walked forward and hugged her, "please. Come on."

This jarred Mavis back to reality. Her eyes became blue, and she looked around, as if seeing them for the first time.

"Oh...I'm sorry," she said hurriedly, "alright...lets get going, come on."

Mavis led the way into the woods behind the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, Johnny, Fubuki, and Techno following her quickly. Now that she thought of it, Mavis finally realized how screwed their position actually was. They had no mode of transportation, they lost their only ally, and one of their own had just died.

Mavis's eyes flickered black, but then became blue yet again. She shook her head. What was going on? Why was she losing control like this all the time? Was it a side-effect of her anger? It probably was.

After a few hours of hiking through the forests, they reached a city in what Mavis found out was Florida. It was a factory city, judging from all the smokestacks and tall, iron buildings that spewed fumes into the air.

Mavis used extrasensory perception to find where she was, and cursed. Their five hours of walking had barely brought then a fourth of the way to the nearest airport.

Mavis finally lost patience, after hiking around the factory city. She stopped walking, "Okay, Fubuki and Johnny, grab hold of my hands. We're flying to Shanghai."

"What?" Fubuki stared, "Mavis, I don't think even you can do-"

"I can." said Mavis. She was truly confident. Her entire body was still glowing a faint black aura that really creeped out Fubuki, but she still insisted on asking, "Well, how about the ocean? You're just gonna fly over it?"

"Why not?" asked Mavis. She grabbed Techno, shoving him into her pocket, "I think I can do it."

"But..what if we-"

"Crash? Then we crash. Would you rather be stuck here hiking for the next week to an airport that probably doesn't exist because tourism doesn't exist anymore?" asked Mavis impatiently.

Fubuki looked like she wanted to argue, but decided not to. She finally looking at the ground, "Alright." she murmured glumly.

Mavis grabbed Johnny's and Fubuki's arms, "Well, here we go." she said promptly. There was a second of silence, then...an explosion?

A massive, 5-mile diameter crater appeared where they just were, as Mavis kicked off the ground so hard it caused them to literally disappear from the vantage point of a person watching them from the ground.

Mavis rocketed towards Shanghai. She was going to kill George. Nobody was going to stop her this time.

* * *

"Sir, we've arrived at the planet in which the source of power came from," said B13948, "the source is resonating right now from a person on that planet. Our scanners have confirmed it."

"Good," said a man who was sitting on the General's char in the bridge. He was wearing head-to-toe white plated armor, and was actually relatively old. He couldn't be younger than 50. "Send out our reconnaissance probes to gather information on this...individual. We don't want this to all be a false trail."

"Good idea, sir." said B13948, "deploying reconnaissance droids now."

Cedron stared at the display surface in front of him. It showed a display of the planet that he was about to possibly invade. It was a lively planet, far more healthy-looking than any other planet he's been to. Maybe that's why people with such power lived there.

Cedron was the leader of the Nameless Discipline, a group of galactical dominators who lived off the resources of other planets and worlds. They had little to no resistance in doing this, usually resorting to using their fleet's massive cannons to destroy all who opposed them, before going in to loot the planet and enslave its inhabitants.

Cedron's ship was the size of an entire city, with weapons, living quarters, and entire farms inside of it. It was essentially self-sustaining, with thousands of slaves working in the farms, and even more soldiers guarding over them to make sure they didn't get any ideas.

He had come to this planet not to take loot or enslave more people, but for a particular individual. Years ago, there was a prophecy that said that the Nameless Discipline was doomed to fall, and that Cedron was the only one who could save it. According to the prophecy, one individual of extraordinary power resided in the universe. That individual is the only one in the universe who has the capability of annihilating the Nameless Discipline. Cedron's job was to defeat this individual.

Cedron had been using a Power Core Scanner. It was essentially a scanner that measured how powerful someone was, except it worked in massive scale. He had already found the massive source of power to be in his galaxy, and had narrowed down the search to this solar system, where he had narrowed the search to Earth.

Right now, Cedron's fleet of 238 city-sized warships were orbiting Jupiter, not really making a move. Cedron had traveled across the galaxy for this. He wasn't about to go in without a plan. He had to learn about this planet first. Learn how powerful it was.

Cedron smiled with relief. He had finally found where this individual was. Now, according to the prophecy, he would be the one to defeat this individual.

* * *

"Sir, it just passed by orbit again!" said one of the officers, staring at the display screen, "it looks like...ships!"

George also saw it. A massive, gargantuan fleet of ships that were orbiting Jupiter. "Zoom." he said seriously, "what if it's just some really big asteroids?"

The camera zoomed in, and there were gasps across the room. It was undoubtedly a giant fleet of warships.

George turned to one of his officers, "How much longer until Project Strato will be ready?"

The officers shook his head, "Not fast enough. It'll take us at least another month. From the looks of it, these ships can travel faster than light. They just...appeared!"

"Crap…" George stared at the screen, "alright then. Deploy orbital defense systems, I want them prepped and ready within the next week. We don't know when these guys will strike…"

George, surprisingly, did have a backup plan for a situation like this. He had anticipated alien invasion, and had included a specific department just for it.

"Yes sir." said his chief commanding officer, "is that all?"

"Yes," said George, "now go, and make sure that those damn aliens don't get near us."

* * *

 **Note: It's president's week, so I have more time to write**


	76. The Dead King

Mavis reached Shanghai in three seconds without even putting in any effort. She crossed the atlantic ocean in 1 second, crossed over Europe in another second, and landed in shanghai at the last second. When she did land, she didn't slow down, instead colliding full-force into the ground, causing a massive explosion that shook the ground and flattened every building within ten miles of her.

Fubuki and Johnny let go of her hand. Both of them seemed kind of dazed from the speed of what happened. At the current moment, it was nighttime in shanghai, but Mavis's explosion was just about the least low-key thing anyone could've done. Fires were already breaking out, and the explosions turned the entire city into a firework show.

Immediately, alarms began blaring. George probably set up strong defenses in case they had found the whereabouts of him, and sure enough, two massive mechs were already marching in their direction. Missiles flew at them from silos that were hidden from view. The sound of mortars firing grenades could be heard above it all.

Mavis loved it. It was the satisfaction of crushing something that was weaker than her. She disappeared, reappearing behind the mechs and telekinetically crushing them. She let the missiles collide with her, creating a massive explosion that sucked the oxygen right out of the air. The place where Mavis stood temporarily vanished in a massive flash of white light.

"Mavis!" Johnny tried to get close, but the heat was too much for him. Fubuki flew up, throwing fireballs at the mortars. The missile barrage continued for a full minute, and when it finally stopped, Johnny ran over, to find Mavis standing there, perfectly fine.

"Mavis...you're fine?" Johnny didn't try to hide the surprise in his voice, "how did you-"

"Those missiles were weak," said Mavis, "go and take care of the soldiers, I'll go and find where George is hiding."

"What soldiers?" asked Johnny, looking around. He then saw a platoon of soldiers make a turn and head straight for them. Mavis must've saw them with her extrasensory perception.

Shanghai, in a matter of a minute, had turned into a fully-fledged warzone. Mavis ran so fast that she created hundreds of afterimages. Whenever Johnny saw a random group of soldiers randomly just die, or whenever a mech exploded for no reason, he knew Mavis was there. He and Fubuki held off the rest of the soldiers, Johnny using magnetism to remotely detonate the grenades that the soldiers carried, and Fubuki throwing fireballs at anything she saw.

Mavis flew over the city, using extrasensory perception to search for George. Her vision tunneled, going through dozens of alleyways, looking through every nook and cranny, flying through every building and every tunnel in the entire city, until finally-

"There you are," hissed Mavis, "I see you.". George was hiding in an underground bunker, which was located a good 400 meters underground. The bunker walls were made up of 20 feet of solid graphene. How Mavis figured that out, she didn't know.

"Johnny! Fubuki! Over here!" yelled Mavis, "I found where he is!"

Johnny, who just got finished blowing up a mech, flew over. Fubuki also nodded, flying over, right as the mech she was just fighting hit her, hard. Fubuki flew against a nearby wall, smashing right through it. Before the mech could get any closer, it suddenly froze, pointed its own gun at itself, and shot itself multiple times.

"Yeah, stay the hell away from Fubuki." said Johnny, flicking his hand again. The Mech exploded, parts of it flying everywhere.

Mavis ran over to Fubuki, helping her up. "You okay?" asked Mavis urgently, "you look kinda battered up, come on."

Fubuki got up. She had a nasty wound on her shoulder. "I don't know why it isn't healing…" she muttered, staring at her shoulder wound, "it usually heals immediately…"

Mavis helped Fubuki over behind a wall, and Johnny took up defense, "Listen, Fubuki, you're coming with us. If you stay here, you'll die. Come on, up you get."

Fubuki shrugged her off, "I'm fine," she insisted, "come on, lets kill George."

Mavis nodded, and ran over to the area directly above where George was hiding. "Where's the entrance?" asked Johnny, looking around while deflecting a missile, "is there even an entrance?"

Mavis didn't answer. Instead, she punched the ground, cleaving a hole straight down into the bunker, and punching right through the graphene as if it was butter. Above her, Johnny and Fubuki floated down. Mavis noted that Fubuki was slightly massaging her shoulder, which was still bleeding.

Around Mavis, there was yelling, as soldiers noticed the giant hole that had just opened up above them, and opened fire at Mavis. Mavis threw all the soldiers back, not even putting effort into blocking the bullets.

Mavis looked around, but didn't see George. She frowned. She had just seen George sitting in this very room. He must've moved. At the other end of the room, there was a large, steel blast door. Mavis marched over to it, and punched it open.

Behind it was a massive room. Imagine a football field, now imagine that multiplied by three. That was about the length and width of the room. Now imagine two football fields. That was about the height of the room. On the other end of it, was George.

George wasn't about to give them the chance to fight him. He pressed a button on his wrist panel, and immediately, dozens of robots flew down at them from the ceiling, armed with energy swords and staffs.

Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki fought their way through the robots, slicing through them easily. Fubuki, however, got stabbed right on her wound, and she went down with a scream. Immediately, Johnny released a magnetic wave that fried the circuits of that robot, killing it instantly.

Fubuki was going to get up, but Mavis forced her to sit back down, "You've fought enough today," she murmured, "stay here. This isn't your fight anyways."

Fubuki was going to argue, but the rock solid look in Mavis's eyes forced her to mumble, "Fine."

Mavis turned back to George, who was fumbling with some sort of suitcase in his hands. He took out what appeared to be a key, and attached it into the wall. Immediately, a suit, suspended by cables and wires, came out of the ceiling and was lowered to him.

"That doesn't look good," murmured Mavis, "Johnny, come on, lets end this!"

Mavis made a dash for George, but several turrets rose out of the ground right in time, opening fire and forcing Mavis to take time to destroy them.

That time was just enough for George to put on the suit. There was a loud hissing noise as all the bolts and seals were closed. Right as Mavis destroyed the last turret, she turned around to find a massive robot sitting in front of her.

George's suit was huge. Looming fifteen feet tall, with spikes and menacing images painted on the sides of the metal. Johnny gasped, and nearly collapsed on the ground next to her.

"Johnny, you okay?" asked Mavis, leaning down to help Johnny back up.

"I'm fine…." gasped Johnny, "magnetic manipulation doesn't work on him...I won't be of any help in this battle."

Mavis nodded, patting Johnny on the back, "it's fine," she said, "I'll take care of it."

Mavis turned towards George, who didn't move. "I let you live," she hissed, "I let you live, and this is what you give me in return. A world full of mindless people."

"It was a necessary sacrifice," said George through the suit, "can you not see, Mavis? The weak are meant to be ruled by the strong. That is the only way. I must admit, I am impressed that you managed to find me, and get to me, in less than a day. But you should not be worrying about me. There are more important things to fight for in the world. Especially for you."

Mavis spat on the ground, "You're the reason the world is so screwed up right now," she said venomously, "I knew it was a mistake, letting you live, but now I've come to fix that mistake."

"Such spirit." George's robot's eyes glowed, "but still futile. Today, you will be defeated."

George charged at Mavis. Out of his left arm an energy blade was activated, and George slashed downward at Mavis. Mavis easily dodged the attack, jumping back, then flying up. She dived at George, going under his legs and punching his abdomen.

Any normal robot would've been destroyed instantly, but the armor of the robot appeared to protect George. George simply stumbled back. Growling, he leapt at Mavis yet again, activating several weapons systems, launching explosives and bullets and grenades everywhere.

Mavis's reaction speed came in, and Mavis easily dodged all of the projectiles, bringing herself close enough to grab George by the face and punch him hard.

George's robot stumbled back yet again, but still continued its heavy barrage. Mavis cursed. Whatever material this robot was made of, it was far stronger than anything she's encountered. She couldn't punch George to death, so she had to find some other way of defeating him.

As George lunged out, using his energy blade to attempt to kill Mavis, Mavis ducked underneath George and grabbed his frame telekinetically. She applied as much force as she could to the armor. The area around George began to vibrate with the gravitational manipulation that was happening, but George's armor somehow stayed put.

"A good move, Mavis," said George, "but you forget that this suit is designed specifically to defeat _you_. I have installed cables within the robot that push outwards to counteract the force you're applying to it."

Mavis stopped her attack once she heard this. It was no use. Behind her, Johnny had gotten up, and was using his magnetic powers to throw random pieces of metal at George. George was pelted by turrets, twisted wires, droid frames, guns, even empty bullet casings. They were nothing but annoyances for him.

Mavis suddenly had an idea. She vanished, running quickly around George, until she had created several afterimages. If her predictions were correct, George was using a tracking system specifically designed for her speed to hit her with bullets and missiles.

George's tracking systems began to go crazy, firing bullets in random directions, and in places she really wasn't in. George growled with frustration, "You can run, but eventually you'll get tired out." he said, as he launched another missile at an afterimage.

 _Oh, not I won't_ , was the only thing Mavis thought. Slowly, she began to make her afterimages run faster, until there were several missiles chasing the afterimages, then, she made the afterimages slowly grow closer to George-

 _BOOOM_

A loud explosion, and a bright flash of light, as Mavis's afterimages merged with the robot, and George's own missiles collided with himself. George's robot fell back, an entire arm blown off from the massive explosion.

George, however, still stood up. "Your effort are all in vain," he said slyly, "after I'm done finishing you off, I will end all other resistance that opposes me. Your husband, Johnny, will die, and after him, your student, Fubuki."

Mavis's vision tunneled. Johnny. Fubuki. That's what she was fighting for right now. "Oh, you'll regret saying that." she hissed, vanishing.

"What the-" next thing George knew, Mavis was right behind him, and had grabbed hold of the head of the robot. Without thinking, Mavis poured out her life force into the robot. She expected to feel herself weakening, but instead, felt nothing.

But at the same time, it appeared to work. George didn't know how to counter Mavis's essence transfer abilities. The robot began doing weird stuff. It froze up, then began to walk in circles. Mavis got up, walking behind the robot, grabbing its entry hatch, and pulling.

Inside the robot, George was panicking. His displays were flashing red, and a back camera showed Mavis trying to break into the robot. "No…" he murmured, "NO!"

 _Warning: 22 giganewtons of force is being applied to door. Stabilizers are being overridden._

Mavis pulled the door open, tossing it aside, and grabbed George, ripping him from his seat in the robot and throwing him out. George knew it was over. There was a reason he decided to make a robot, and that was because he knew that he couldn't face Mavis in unassisted combat.

Mavis grabbed George by the neck and lifted him two feet above the ground, "Today," she hissed, "I will kill you."

George gasped. His vision was going black. He was really going to die now.

"This is for Gerschiv, for James, for G4, and for every person you've ever brainwashed with your hive mind," said Mavis, "you will be remembered for nothing. You will leave this world as a criminal."

Mavis's grip tightened, and George gave out a ghastly scream as his body began to crumble to dust. Soon, he was nothing but a pile of sand underneath Mavis's feet.

Mavis turned to Johnny and Fubuki, who were both watching her with awe. "It's over," said Mavis, "it's all over now. We've killed George. We've done what we've needed to do."

Fubuki nodded, but winced, as her wound gave her another sharp stab of pain. Mavis noticed this, and quickly ran over, "Fubuki, what were you _stabbed_ with?"

"It…" Fubuki's voice was surprisingly wispy, "it was...poison...I think…"

"Oh crap." Mavis quickly grabbed Techno and activated him, "Techno, give Fubuki treatment right now."

After Fubuki was in a splint, and was leaning on Mavis, the four of them made their way outside, levitating through the hole Mavis punched through the ground. All around them, the city was in flames. Soldiers ran around, not knowing what to do, since they weren't receiving orders.

George was dead.

But that didn't mean that Mavis's job was done yet. Techno quickly murmured, "Uh...oh…"

Mavis turned to him, one eyebrow raised, "What?" she asked, "I swear, if you say that George is still alive-"

"No, George is dead," said Techno, "it's just….unless my scanners are glitching right now, I can swear that there's a fleet of city-sized warships right above Earth right now."


	77. Bound by Obligation

Mavis's first thought was, _Oh crap_. A fleet of city-sized warships orbiting Earth? It sounded ludicrous….but it might just be real. Techno's information was always reliable. Mavis looked up herself, her eyes dilating as her extrasensory perception came into play. Her vision tunneled, going far into space, where she saw….sure enough, a massive fleet of ships, boasting huge guns.

"Maybe...it's a project that George was doing," said Mavis, "and...he didn't get to complete it before we killed him?". It seemed like a very plausible theory. George was always tinkering with technology, and this seemed like something he would attempt.

Techno didn't respond immediately, "I...I guess that that would make sense," he said, "but at the same time, we must consider the fact that these warships are made of incredible amounts of materials that are very rare on Earth. It would be a higher chance that this is actually some kind of extraterrestrial being."

Mavis shrugged it off quickly, "George probably had some way to duplicate materials," she said, "he's always tinkering with technology. Why should this be any different? Come on, lets go back home."

"Yeah," said Johnny, rubbing his shoulder, "lets go back to Paradise, I'm hungry."

Mavis helped Fubuki up, who winced in pain as her poisoned shoulder was forced out of a resting position. "It's okay," said Mavis softly, "you'll be back in Paradise in no time."

Fubuki smiled, "Thanks." she murmured, "you guys are right. Let's return home."

There was suddenly a yell, "Look! It's the people who must've killed the Supreme Leader! Get them!". Mavis grabbed Johnny and Fubuki, and telekinetically shoved Techno back into her pocket. Before any soldier could even fire a single bullet, Mavis had vanished, leaving a smoking crater where she just was.

Mavis flew through the air, enjoying the feeling of flying. _Enjoying_ the feeling. She had almost forgotten what it felt like, to fly without caring. Beforehand, she was all about precision. All about getting to her location as fast as possible, or else George or some other bad guy would blow her up. But now, she was finally free. Finally free of responsibility.

Two seconds later, they were back on Paradise. Mavis dropped off Fubuki and Johnny, being a little gentle with Fubuki, and let Techno whiz out. Paradise looked the same as ever. The same palm trees, the same soft sand. The same beautiful water.

Mavis helped Fubuki down into headquarters, laying her down on a bed. She looked at the wound, and nearly vomited. Techno's treatment seemed to have only slowed the poison, rather than get rid of it. By now, nasty yellow veins were appearing from where the wound was. Fubuki's breathing was growing shallow.

"Mavis…" Fubuki grabbed Mavis's arm, "water." she said, "Please...water."

Mavis nodded, "Okay," she said, "it'll be alright, Fubuki, I'll get you some water.". Mavis turned to Techno, "Oi, get some water for Fubuki!" she yelled, "make sure it's nice and cold!"

Techno whizzed out a few seconds later, and handed a cup of ice-cold water to Fubuki, who drank it completely. But something happened. As soon as Fubuki was done drinking the water, she gasped, leaning over and throwing up, "Hot...Hot!" she gasped, "The water...it's...hot…"

Mavis turned to Techno, "I told you to get cold water!" she snapped, "what's up with you?"

"But, Miss Dracula, the water _is_ cold." said Techno.

Mavis groaned with frustration. She vanished, then reappeared, holding a cup of ice cold water, and gave it to Fubuki. Fubuki eagerly accepted it, but immediately recoiled at a single drop of it, "It's...hot!" she gasped, "Spicy…"

"What the hell…" murmured Mavis, "What type of poison was on that blade…"

"I do not know." said Techno, "I don't recognize it, so I can only give Fubuki general cures. I have no way to completely heal her."

"Well...crap." muttered Mavis, as she watched Fubuki wretch on the bed, "how're we gonna heal Fubuki then? We can't just leave her."

"I have no cure." said Techno bluntly, "The best I can do is slow down the poison, but at its current rate…" Techno stared sadly at Fubuki, "she won't last for more than two weeks."

* * *

"Woah! The signal just jumped to 98% the speed of light!" said B13948, "it's...it's stopped in the middle of the ocean, and it's not moving anymore." he said, "should I deploy abduction drones?"

"No." said Cedron, "we will watch her for now. See what she is up to. Send in spy drones, I want to know her objectives, her exact location, who she is working with, what species she is, and how strong she is."

"She's pretty strong, sir." said B13948, "she jumped to 98% the speed of light instantaneously. That's faster than most of our ships."

Cedron waved his hands impatiently, "It doesn't matter," he said, "have our spy drones been deployed?"

"Yes," said B13948, "but it'll take time to get to the target's location. Wait a second….". A few minutes later, B13948 said, "Our spy drone is in position right now, audio is coming through live right now."

Cedron leaned forward, listening to the voices that were now coming from the computer that he was watching. It sounded as if a guy and a girl were talking, with something else that sounded awfully robotic speaking in intervals between them.

 _...We have to find a cure for her though, she's not going to last much longer-_

 _Mavis, as much as I would want to do that, we can't just barge into some random medical facility and steal some random cure. We just defeated the Supreme Leader, remember. Those soldiers are gonna be on even higher alert now._

 _Fubuki is more important than anything else right now. We have to go. We can get through soldiers easily, you saw how easily we tore up the streets in Shanghai._

 _Yeah, but...who's gonna take care of Fubuki, if we are to leave?_

 _Techno can do that. We can go alone to the medical facility. That way, someone can be back here to keep watch over our home, and we can steal the cure for Fubuki._

Cedron waved his hands, "Can I get a visual?" he asked, "I want to see what's going on as well as hearing it."

"Certainly." said B13948, "visual coming through...now."

On the display screen, the black surface turned into a high definition video of a room that appeared to be underground. There was one unconscious female lying in a bed, with a male and female talking over her. What appeared to be a tiny robot floated on the other end of the bed.

"So…" Cedron stroked his chin, "it appears as if the girl on the bed is in critical condition...according to what they've said, she's got no more than two weeks to live. Interesting...these are true warriors.

Cedron stood up, "Capture the girl who is in critical condition," he said, "do not harm anyone else. I don't want to pursue them, so I'll make them pursue me."

* * *

That night, Mavis and Johnny had fallen asleep. True, they were both worried and tired about Fubuki, but in the end, they both knew that their days of fighting and running were over. Now they could stay here, in this island, and enjoy life.

After stabilizing Fubuki as best as they could, Johnny and Mavis had retreated into their room. At once, without knowing what was really going on, they began to make out, and soon enough went even further. They were actually kind of lucky that Fubuki was knocked out, because they were _very_ loud. Mavis had almost forgotten what sexual pleasure felt like. It was really good.

Eventually, the two of them had collapsed, exhausted and happy, seriously overexerted, but also worried, next to each other, and had fallen asleep…

Mavis had a dream that night. A dream of her father. She was standing on the sandy beach of Paradise, and in front of her, was none other than Dracula, who smiled when he saw Mavis.

"Hi dad," said Mavis, "what're you here for? Me and Johnny and Fubuki just finished killing George. You probably already know that though."

"Of course I do, darling," said Dracula, smiling, "Mavis, you have to realize how proud I truly am of you. You've exceeded all my expectations. You've solved every problem and went through every hurdle."

"Yeah…" Mavis thought for a moment, then sighed, "I guess I have."

"Mavis...you must not become too open and unguarded," said Dracula, "danger still lurks in the shadows, waiting for you. Even if you think your problems are solved, they never truly are."

Mavis frowned, "What do you mean?" she asked, "what else apart from George do I have to settle?"

"There are beings that are strong," said Dracula, "so strong, and so powerful, that they would even impress you. Such beings are now here, at Earth."

"What do you mean?" asked Mavis, frowning, "what does any of this have to do with me though? Does this have to do with the warships that were appearing in Earth's orbit?"

Dracula looked as if he was about to say something, but decided against it, "I'm bound by the laws of death," he said, "listen, Mavis, stay vigilant. Enjoy your time of peace with Johnny, but don't ever let your guard down."

"But what's going to come after us?" asked Mavis urgently, "please, dad, tell me."

Dracula hesitated, "I cannot," he said, "please, Mavis, I understand that you cannot avoid danger, but at least promise to me that you'll live."

Mavis looked at his dad. The person she had lost so many days ago. It seemed like ages by now. "I will." she said, "don't worry about me dying right now, dad."

Dracula saw her face. It was happy, but also stressed. Dracula sighed, "You worry about your friend, Fubuki. You think that she will join the dead."

"How can I not worry about that?" asked Mavis, "she's been here for a while by now, I have an obligation to protect her. I've trained her and made her more powerful than ever before. And now she's poisoned. May not even make it through the next week, according to what Techno's been telling me."

Dracula placed a hand on Mavis's shoulder, "you will find a way, I'm sure of it." he said in a comforting tone, "you've accomplished feats that I couldn't have done. You've become so powerful, you've already surpassed the strongest of your kind."

Mavis stared glumly at the ground, "The only reason I became strong was because I was on the run all the time. And the emotions helped me as well. Helped me fuel my power."

"Anger should not guide you, but that does not mean that you shouldn't use it." said Dracula, "don't let your anger go unguided. Channel it for your own use."

"That's what I've been doing," said Mavis, "and still…"

There was a silence, as Mavis stared off into the ocean. In her dream, the sunrise had just begun. "Dad, you always come to see me. Is it possible that I can see mom?"

Dracula winced. "The laws of death are complex," he said, "nobody truly understands them. One day, when you pass, you will understand. Your mother cannot see you. She is bound by natural law."

Mavis sighed. She didn't expect much. "Alright then," she said, "I'm just sick of the fighting. I want it to stop."

"Do you?" asked Dracula, "do you truly want the fighting to stop?"

Mavis paused. If the fighting did stop, then true, her life would be way more peaceful, but at the same time, she wouldn't do anything. She would just sit on her island, doing nothing. With bitterness, she realized that fighting had become her life. Saving the world, fighting for the world. She was a _hero._

"I...I guess life would be a hell of alot different than what it is now without fighting," mumbled Mavis, "but I would really like some peace and quiet for a little."

"Everyone wants that," said Dracula bitterly, " _I_ wanted your life to be like that. But I realized that life isn't about being passive. It's about doing something. It's about making a change in this world."

Mavis didn't respond. She stared at the glassy water. For all her life, she dreamed of exploration. She dreamed of visiting places. Of seeing the world. Now, her dream had come true.

"I must go now," said Dracula, "goodbye, Mavis. You have some business to take care of. Good luck."

"What?" Mavis turned around, but Dracula was gone.

And Mavis woke up to the sound of an explosion.


	78. The Test

Mavis's eyes flew open. She telekinetically threw on her clothes, and within five seconds had sprinted outside. Behind her, Johnny scrambled out of bed as well, following her.

Mavis's first thought was simple, and very realistic. _Fubuki_. She sprinted into the living room, to see that Fubuki had vanished. "FUBUKI!", yelling Mavis, running out of the doors, and turning up in time to see a squad of at least twelve droids carrying Fubuki's body upwards, towards the sky.

Mavis clenched her fists. She didn't know who these droids were, or who they worked for. The droids looked more like spy droids than anything else. They had an spherical head, with four eyes divided equally amongst the sides, and an antenna sticking out of the top. They also had several thin legs, which they were using to carry Fubuki, who appeared to be unconscious.

Johnny let loose a magnetic wave, destroying five of the droids with it, but Fubuki was already too far away for Johnny to hit the droid that was carrying her. Mavis disappeared, then reappeared right next to the droid that was carrying Fubuki. She grabbed it and destroyed it easily. Fubuki began free-falling, now supported by nothing, but was caught by one of the other droids.

Just as Mavis was about to engage that droid, however, a ship appeared right above her and opened fire. At least a dozen missiles collided with her, sending her spiralling down to Earth and hitting the water. The missiles had no effect on Mavis whatsoever, and she got right back up, flying up towards the droids. But by then, the droids had already vanished inside the ship, which had decloaked.

"Oh, no you don't." hissed Mavis. She rocketed upwards, then released a telekinetic wave in all directions. A little to her left, the ship that was carrying Fubuki came out of cloak temporarily, as the telekinetic wave hit it.

Mavis appeared right behind the ship, punching one of its thrusters, hard. The thruster began to splutter and blink quickly, so hopefully Mavis had damaged it. However, whoever the pilots were seemed to have the idea. They quickly accelerated the ship, causing the thrusters to blow out more flames towards Mavis. The heat was enough to knock Mavis back down towards Earth, where she collided with the water near Paradise yet again.

Johnny ran over, "Mavis, are you okay?" he asked urgently, "you fell from a...pretty impressive height. What happened?"

Mavis got up, spitting sand out of her mouth. Her eyes were glowing, as her extrasensory perception followed the ship, which had begun to go up….up, and out of the atmosphere…

"We're going to need something that can bring us into space," said Mavis, "something that can punch through alien technology. TECHNO."

Techno whizzed out of headquarters, having just activated and still a little groggy, "Yes, Miss Dracula?" he asked, "I've been looking for Fubuki, she's nowhere to be found right now-"

"Yes, that's because a bunch of Aliens stole her," snapped Mavis, "listen, I need something that can bring us to space. A ship of some kind. We'll need it to be heavily armed, but also stealthy and quiet. You can do that, right?"

"Of course I can," said Techno. He had already begun working, wires and computer chips appearing around him and assembling themselves into circuit boards and weapons systems, "It will take some time though, about two weeks."

" _Two weeks_?" said Mavis, incredulous, "we don't have that much time! We must start moving, now! Every second wasted, Fubuki grows closer and closer to...whatever those aliens want with Fubuki."

"Well, I'm afraid that I cannot help it," said Techno, "it will simply take that much time, no matter which way you put it. I'm talking about the cheapest model I know of, by the way."

Mavis growled with frustration, "Well, start working then." she said glumly, waving her hands, "I have a plan right now…." Mavis turned to Johnny, "Listen, Johnny, I know you'll probably not agree with this, but I'm gonna go up to the aliens. Alone."

Johnny stared at her, "What?" he asked, "but...there's no oxygen. You'll die instantly. So would anyone else who tried to do that."

"Not me," said Mavis, "I can withstand it. I'm certain." Mavis truly felt this way. Her endurance was off the charts, and she knew it. If she could survive direct missile hits, and thousands of bullets, and grenades, and plasma, then she could survive space as well.

"And anyways," she said, "if I can't survive out there, then I'll head right back. Don't worry about me.". In the back of her mind, however, she kind of knew that if she couldn't survive in space, and went out there anyways, she probably wouldn't be able to come back, but she didn't say this.

Johnny, however, didn't seem to realize this. "Fine." he said, "but return as soon as possible. If you can get Fubuki, then get her. If you can't, then don't."

Mavis smiled, "Thanks," she murmured, "I'll be back before you know it, don't worry."

Mavis looked up, and jumped, going so fast she vanished instantly. Most people wouldn't be able to keep track of the speed that Mavis had to handle, but Mavis could. Everything traveled in slow motion for her, and soon enough she saw...blackness.

It was space, and beneath her, she saw Earth. Holding her breath, she looked around, and instantly located the fleet. Without waiting, Mavis flew straight for it, using extrasensory perception to locate where Fubuki was.

Her vision tunneled, flying through the hallways, going through every room, every corner, every turn and twist of the ships, until finally, she located Fubuki in the largest ship. Mavis cursed. Of course she was in the largest ship.

Mavis flew straight towards the ship. Knowing how decompression worked, she only looked for areas which she could directly enter through, and soon enough found it. The hangar bays of the ship were still open. Mavis angled downwards and rocketed forwards, going through the hangar bays, and through the ray shields which prevented decompression.

Mavis vanished, turning into a bat, and went to the ceiling. Beneath her, aliens of all sorts were meandering around. Nobody seemed to have noticed her fly in. Most of the aliens were the same, actually. Most of them were long, and sleek, with large, bulbous blue eyes. Some were armed with weapons.

Mavis flew down, through the hallways, sweeping through dozens of tunnels. She passed by dozens of large farms, worked by rag-worn peasants, and zipped by dozens of barracks, which were teeming with aliens, armed with weapons and strange technologies that Mavis didn't recognize.

She finally turned a corner, and found herself facing a room, about the size of a football field. This may seem large, but compared to many of the other rooms Mavis saw in the ship, it was actually pretty small. On the other side, behind a set of iron bars, was Fubuki, unconscious.

"Fubuki!" Mavis flew over, turning back into a vampire. Fubuki looked dreadful. She was awfully thin, and her arm was bent in a weird angle, "Fubuki, come on!"

Fubuki continued to stay unconscious, so Mavis grabbed the bars of the cell and ripped them off their hinges. She flung Fubuki over her shoulders and began to make her way back across the room, when suddenly-

 _SSScccchhzzzz_

Blast doors closed down on either side of the room, blocking off the entrances and exits. Above Mavis, higher up on the wall, a one-way window opened up. Mavis couldn't see who was on the other side, but they could definitely see her. Without hesitation, Mavis tried to jump up at the window, her fist going back for the punch, when an electrical shock forced her to retreat. The window was guarded by some sort of electrical shield.

On the other side of the glass, Cedron smiled. "She has a warrior spirit," he commented, "coming all the way from her planet just to save a friend. Hmph." Cedron turned to B13948, "begin simulations. Start from dragon level."

As Mavis landed on the ground, she felt the ground beneath her rumbling. Setting Fubuki down, she looked right as a massive, gargantuan mech appeared in front of her. It was at least forty feet tall, and was armed with massive incineration cannons and machine guns. It opened fire, going straight for Mavis.

Mavis didn't even give the mech a chance to realize how weak it was. In two seconds, the mech was nothing more than a pile of twisted metal, its bullets and incineration cannon doing nothing to stop Mavis whatsoever.

Right behind Mavis, a human-sized mech jumped out of a hatch that just opened up on the ground. It sped straight for Mavis's body, going at Mach 57, activating an energy blade that it brought down on Mavis's neck-

Mavis vanished, her reaction speed carrying her. She reappeared behind the mech and grabbed its head, ripping it off, and smashing it against the ground. Fubuki's body still lay behind Mavis, and as Cedron was watching the battle, he suddenly had an idea. "Let's see how she fares when we target those whom she cares about," he said, flipping some dials, "start simulation. Now."

All around Fubuki, smaller, more numerous Mechs began to appear. Some attacked her, but others went for Fubuki. Mavis immediately noted that the droids were trying to surround her, and took the initiative. She didn't want to fight a battle in which she was surrounded.

Mavis vanished, and less than a nanosecond later, so did Fubuki's body. They both reappeared on the other end of the room, Mavis setting Fubuki body against the wall. The robots and droids quickly switched routes, charging at Mavis yet again. Without hesitation, Mavis grabbed all of the robots in the room, and lifted them high into the air, until they collided with the electrical field. There was a loud sizzling noise, as all of the robots were destroyed.

"Alright…" Cedron nodded, "she's strong. Let's see how she faces against our fastest projectiles."

Behind Mavis, a missile was launched at her. Mavis immediately sensed it, and ran. The missile was fast. Faster than any other missile Mavis had ever dealt with, but it was still slow compared to her. The missile accelerated, traveling at Mach 40,000, but Mavis easily outpaced it. In the end, Mavis got bored, and decided to telekinetically force the missile to collide with the electrical field.

There was a loud explosion, as the missile collided, but in the end, the field was still there.

Mavis grabbed Fubuki's body. Whoever was trying to kill her was probably frustrated right now, but she wasn't going to let them have another chance. Mavis ran straight at the door, running so fast that she phased through the wall, along with Fubuki.

"Woah! She just went FTL!" yelled B13948, "Should I code red?"

"Yes! Go, do it!" said Cedron. In his mind, he was almost certain by now. This girl was the person the prophecy referred to. Immediately, alarms started blaring in the hallways, a voice on the intercom informed all crew members that there was a prisoner who escaped, and they were to capture and bring her alive to Cedron immediately.

As Mavis ran down the hallway, she immediately noted the alarms, and the fact that aliens were now shooting at her from all directions. She didn't even bother blocking the shots now, unless they were about to hit Fubuki. She was probably hit by at least a thousand shots, but they didn't hurt her. Her flesh and skin simply repaired itself too fast.

Just as Mavis made her way onto the hangar bay, however, she felt a tugging sensation on her waist, and was suddenly thrown back. Mavis landed upright, telekinetically setting Fubuki down next to her. She looked behind her, and saw a cloaked person standing there. Underneath the cloak, Mavis saw a mask.

"General Cedron has ordered me to capture you," said the cloaked man, "I never lose a battle, I always win. Prepare to be defeated."

Mavis rolled her eyes. Great. Another weakling to beat up. Mavis vanished, reappearing right behind the cloaked man. The soldier tried to block Mavis's attack, but was too slow. Mavis's punch sent him flying several hundred feet away, where he smashed into a wall and fell, unconscious. Mavis knew that he was still alive from his life force.

It was then when Mavis noticed something. She was standing in front of a massive tube. A massive tube...that was starting to glow?

Mavis only had a tenth of a picosecond to respond to it. She grabbed Fubuki, and flew off and as fast as she could, right as a massive, purple beam of light shot out of the tube. It missed Mavis, but the force of it sent her way off course. The last thing Mavis remembered was flying so fast, and accelerating so quickly, and finally, smashing into a moon…


	79. Galactical

Mavis's eyes slowly opened, and adjusted. The first thing she noticed was the silence. The piercing, massive wave of silence. She couldn't hear a thing. She was sitting on what appeared to be some sort of sand/gravel mixture. Next to her, was Fubuki.

"What the…." Mavis tried to speak, but no words came out. Of course, she was in space. Sound doesn't travel in space. Wait a second….Fubuki.

Mavis scrambled over to where Fubuki was. Surprisingly, her telekinetic bubble of air was still there, and Fubuki was still breathing. But she was growing weaker. The oxygen supply was lessening. Mavis was breathing in space. She didn't know how, but she somehow was. It probably had something to do with her being a vampire.

Mavis grabbed Fubuki's body. Her life force, according to Mavis's best estimations, was significantly weaker than what she felt before. Fubuki wouldn't be surviving for much longer if Mavis didn't find a cure.

But how would she do that? She was far away from Earth. That's when Mavis noticed where she was exactly. In front of her, was a massive ball of orange and red. The planet swirled with gas, and inside, Mavis saw lightning strikes. The planet was much larger than Earth. Mavis knew that this could only be one planet. Jupiter.

Her mind swam. How did she end up near Jupiter? Then she remembered the blast of purple light, and the fight on the warship. Mavis stared at the area around her. She had traveled this far, from just a single blast, and yet still survived?

Mavis grabbed Fubuki's body. She would have to go back to Earth. She thought about Johnny, and immediately, a pang of guilt shot through her. She had promised to come back to him directly after getting Fubuki. Now, she was stuck on a planet millions of miles away from Earth, without means of getting back.

Well, she did have a means of getting back. Mavis concentrated, and jumped as hard as she could. Instantly, her vision tunneled, and behind her, the entire moon exploded, sending fragments of moonstone flying everywhere.

Mavis rocketed back towards earth, going faster and faster, only gaining speed. With her extrasensory perception, Mavis saw herself pass by Mars, and finally, right ahead of her, was the fleet of warships.

There was still something nagging Mavis though. Why had the aliens even attacked her? If they wanted to conquer the world, which is what Mavis suspected, why attack her? Why was she so important? Maybe they thought that her power would be enough to topple them. That would be reasonable.

Mavis, this time, didn't go for the flagship. Instead, she went for one of the smaller ships. True, most of the warships were the size of cities, but there were also thousands of tiny corvettes that surrounded each warship. Mavis landed on top of one of the corvettes, and phased right through the door. Once she was inside, there was no chance for the crew.

There was a loud scream, then a squelching noise, as everyone in the corvette was killed. Everyone, except the medical officer on board. Mavis found him hiding in the back of the sick bay. Next to him, two guards were already dead, laying on the ground. The medical officer was relatively young, but older than her. He was in his thirties, and was definitely not human. His neck was very long, and his eyes were black, and appeared to have stars in them.

The medical officer was panicking. "Wh-Who are you?" he asked, backing up, "you're..you're the one in the prophecy, the one who was supposed to be defeated-"

"Shut up." said Mavis. She brought Fubuki over, and laid her down softly on the medical bed, "There's a wound on her shoulder. Poison. I want you to heal her. If you fail, you die."

The medical officer looked terrified, but nodded anyways. He began to take out operation tools. Soon enough, Fubuki had received three injections of alien medication, and had a steady supply of oxygen. Mavis watched the doctor's work carefully.

"How much longer until she'll be able to walk around again?" asked Mavis, "tell me, now. I want answers."

"She's stabilized right now, and she should be able to snap out of her unconsciousness by tomorrow," said the medical officer, "there seems to be minor injuries in her rib cage and abdomen though."

"I see," Mavis ignored the comments about the minor injuries, "what's your name?" she finally asked, looking over at the medical officer, who looked terrified at the question.

"M-my name?" he stammered, "it's...um...Kolt."

"Kolt…" Mavis nodded, staring at Fubuki's resting body, "well, you're lucky. I don't feel as bloodthirsty as I usually am, so you might not have to die. Tell me, how much longer until your leader finds out I'm here?"

"Well…" Kolt swallowed, "I'm not authorized-"

"You _are_ authorized," said Mavis, waving her hands, "Tell me, how much longer until your leader finds out that I'm in this corvette?"

"There are radio checks that the flagship does every three hours," said Kolt, "The next one should be any somewhere in the next twenty minutes. If a ship doesn't respond to a radio check, then the leader will assume that something is wrong and will send a boarding party."

"I see," Mavis paused for a moment, "when you saw me, you said that I was the one in your prophecy. What prophecy? Is this why you came to Earth, out of all places?"

Kolt seemed like he didn't want to say anything, but at the same time, he knew that if he lied, Mavis would be able to spot it immediately. He sighed, "There was a prophecy, nearly half a century ago, that said that there would be an individual in this universe who would spell doom to the Nameless Discipline."

"The nameless discipline?" asked Mavis, "What's that? Is that the name of your little...faction, or whatever you guys call it?"

"Yes," said Kolt, "A faction. That's about right. Anyways, the leader of the Nameless Discipline, Cedron, was obsessed with this prophecy. He eventually learned from a second seer that it was him who would save the faction. He would be the one to defeat you."

"But how do you know that I'm the one in the prophecy?" asked Mavis, "how do you know that this prophecy isn't false anyways? It might just be some loony who doesn't actually know what he's talking about."

"The seer is very credible," said Kolt, "she's predicted countless other events with one hundred percent accuracy. She is never incorrect. Unfortunately, before Cedron could get anymore information, the seer died mysteriously. The seer used the words "incredible power" to describe the individual who would spell doom to the Nameless Order. You, if anyone, possess that power."

"But…" Mavis stared at the wall, "I didn't even know your little organization existed. You guys came to me. I was living perfectly fine before you guys had to show up and ruin everything. I was just finished dealing with another problem when you guys arrived."

"The seer is never incorrect," said Kolt, "if she said that you would spell doom to our empire, then you would spell doom to our empire, whether you admit it or not."

Mavis sighed. It was useless, arguing with Kolt about prophecies. She thought about Johnny, about how he would be stuck on Earth, staring up at the fleet, waiting. Maybe he thought she was dead. Maybe he had given up on her.

No. That was impossible.

There was suddenly a loud knocking noise. There were several clicks, as suddenly, Mavis heard the main door open. She immediately turned on Kolt, "What is this?" she hissed.

Kolt had already put his hands in the air, "It wasn't me, I swear," he said, "these guys are probably just here for maintenance anyways. You can take them out easily. Please, it wasn't me."

Mavis growled, "Stay here," she said authoritatively, then turned into a bat, flying out the medical bay, "I'll return after I'm done dealing with these guys.". Mavis flew through the corvette, until she found the maintenance crew. It appeared as if one of the main warships had connected with the Corvette using some sort of terminal. Kind of like a jet bridge. The maintenance crew had already begun cleaning the corvette, and the person who looked like the leader was calling out.

"This is maintenance! We're beginning the cleaning of Corvette A-26. We require the presence of Captain T. Willards immediately."

Mavis cursed. Once they got to the back, they would notice the 34 dead bodies she had hidden there. She needed to take care of these guys, fast. Before the maintenance crew could even say anything else, Mavis turned into mist, flying into the room and killing everyone instantly. The Jet bridge, however, was still open. Mavis needed to find a way to close it, before anyone noticed what she had just done.

Mavis ran back into the medical bay, "Come on," she said to Kolt, " _come on_ , we have to move!" she grabbed Kolt telekinetically and forced him down the hallway, pushing him into the cockpit. "Retract the bridge." she said, "retract it!"

Kolt was sitting there, not doing anything, "I'm a medical officer!" he said, "I don't know how to work with this type of stuff."

Mavis sighed. She grabbed the control panel and concentrated, using telekinesis to force the Jet Bridge to retract. This, however, did not go unnoticed, as a few soldiers happened to be walking over on the other ship at that time.

"Hey!" Mavis heard someone yell down the other end of the bridge, "Corvette A-26 is retracting its bridge without authorization!" yelled the same man, probably through a walkie talkie or something. Mavis growled. This was just about the last thing she needed.

There was the sound of footsteps, as dozens of soldiers began making their way through the bridge. Mavis gave one last jolt, and sighed right as the bridge retracted completely. Outside the cockpit, Mavis heard screams as several soldiers were sucked into the vacuum of space. But there were still some soldiers on the Corvette. One soldier went into the cockpit, but had his neck snapped as soon as he went through. Two more came through, both killed by Mavis, but one managed to fire a shot. Kolt screamed, as he was hit with a bullet on the chest, going down.

Mavis cursed. She telekinetically forced the Corvette to fly away from the main fleet, and turned her full attention to the soldiers. Within one planck time (the time it takes for light to travel one planck length), all the soldiers in the entire Corvette were dead, their life forces stolen by Mavis.

Mavis quickly knelt down next to Kolt, who was still somehow conscious. The wound was bad, but not enough to kill him instantly. Mavis quickly took the bullet out with telekinesis, then began to forcefully heal the wound using her powers. She felt Kolt's breathing steady, and soon enough, return to normal.

Kolt gasped, "You...you saved me." he said shakily, scrambling up, "you saved me." he said again. He felt the place where his heart was, and instead of a bullet wound, felt skin.

Mavis sighed. She was about to pat herself on the back, when there was an explosion right outside the ship. "Oh crap." she muttered, running back to the cockpit windows. Outside, she saw the main fleet opening fire with their primary batteries, launching volleys of high explosive shells at the Corvette.

"Does this thing have a hyperdrive or whatever you call it?" asked Mavis, fumbling around on the switches, "'cause if it does, then we really need it right now!"

"You mean a warp drive," corrected Kolt, "but yes, there is one. I don't know how to use it though, you're gonna have to do...whatever you were just doing to make it work."

Mavis concentrated, pouring telekinesis into the cockpit controls. She felt the wires, the electrical signals, every computer chip and every pipe and every device in the entire Corvette. She searched around, looking for….there it was. A blue core, filled with intense energy. A label on its said, "warp core". That was it.

Mavis sparked the warp core right as the ship was hit. The force of the massive shell was enough to knock the Corvette off course. Mavis had originally set course to a random star system, but now, she was heading in a completely random direction.

Hoping that she wouldn't warp into a star, Mavis braced as the Corvette activated its warp drive.

* * *

"They escaped?" asked Cedron. He didn't sound angry, more surprised. "How did she escape the blast of the plasma accelerator cannon?"

"She didn't." said B13948, "she took the blast of it, but somehow survived, and also preserved the body of her friend, whom we found out was named Fubuki."

"I see…" murmured Cedron, "well, don't just wait here. Start prepping the fleet for warp."

"Yes sir," said B13948, "but what about Johnny, and their robot? They're still on the surface."

"What about them?" asked Cedron dismissively, "right now, they are a non-issue for us. We need not fear them. Remember, it is only Mavis who we have to worry about. She is the strong one."

"Very well then," said B13948, "it will take about a day to prepare the fleet for warp, some of our fuel cells are still burnt out from the trip to Earth."

"Tell them to hurry up then," said Cedron impatiently, "once we're ready, we warp. And when we warp, we'll find them, and kill Mavis."


	80. Forgotten

Mavis jolted out of hyperspace about thirty minutes later. By then, she had already made sure that Kolt was okay, and had also paid a visit to Fubuki, who was steadily getting better in the back. Alien medicine _was_ truly better than human medicine.

As the corvette came out of hyperspace, Mavis made sure to keep an eye on Kolt. She knew that Kolt probably wouldn't try to harm her, but at the same time, she had to stay vigilant. She didn't want to work really hard to get back to Earth, only to be backstabbed by him.

The first thing Mavis noticed when they jumped out of hyperspace was the light. A solid-white wall of light hit her in the face, and the cockpit windows quickly dimmed, so that Mavis could actually look at the thing that was in front of her.

She had warped right in front of a sun. Immediately, the floors and the control panel began rattling. Mavis quickly turned on the engines, making them go at maximum acceleration, and soon enough, they had escaped the sun's gravitational pull.

It was then when Mavis saw the star system they were in for herself. Right now, she was closest to a rocky planet that was closest to the sun. On the planet, Mavis saw flames and lava lakes. The surface looked like a barren sea of black rock. And orbiting the planet was an planetary docking station.

Mavis turned to Kolt, "How many species exist that have space travel?" she asked, incredulous, "is every system like this? How technologically advanced are you guys?"

"Most systems have been inhabited by factions," said Kolt nervously, "some haven't, but those are rare by now. We've mainly left Earth alone because we didn't want to have war. That was before we heard the prophecy, at least."

There was suddenly static, as someone came through the communications channel on the corvette. It was a low voice, speaking in a dialect that Mavis didn't understand. Kolt, however, did.

"He says that this is neutral territory, and that because we are in a ship that's classified as a 'warship', we have to dock and hand it over to them." said Kolt, "he also says that we'll be going through a background check when we land at the station, then we'll be sent down to the planet."

"Crap." muttered Mavis, as she saw two police cruisers go to either side of her ship. The cruisers guided the corvette to the landing platform, where it was secured by three tubes that attached to the corvette's sides.

The main doors opened, as four guards walked in. They were armed with energy guns, and were lightly armored. Mavis knew that she could easily kill them if needed, but decided not to do so. These people weren't the bad guys, at least.

"quoug'bo iea jemo? iea pmet quoug fequ." The person in charge said to the two of them, "ulo iea janv?". Mavis didn't understand a word the person was saying, and the person in lead noticed her bored expression. He stormed up to her, pointing at her and talking in the same dialect.

"What're they saying?" whispered Mavis to Kolt. Kolt didn't answer at first, but eventually leaned over, "they're talking about imprisoning us." he said, "claims that we're ship thieves. You know, since it's only two of us."

"Makes sense," Mavis turned back to the leader of the police force that had entered, who had just started yelling something else, "should I beat them up? It'll be easy."

"Nah," said Kolt slowly, "we can let them take us. If they do decide to arrest us, then the worst that'll happen is that we'll be brought down to the jail cells on the planet and locked up there. We can escape easily if he does that."

Mavis nodded. The police force leader took out a pair of what appeared to be handcuffs, and put them on Mavis. The handcuffs had an energy seal, which made Mavis smile. Maybe this energy seal could provide her with a challenge.

The police force guided Mavis and Kolt down the aisles of the corvette, and into the docking station, where they were led across the station into a smaller ship. They were then forced into a cell, and soon enough, were flying down towards the planet.

"Dya know this planet?" asked Mavis, staring out the tiny window, in which the planet was growing larger and larger and they drew closer, "I mean, you've seen the galaxy, right? You've probably been here."

"Yeah, I have," said Kolt, "this isn't a good place to be. Lots of sketchy people live on this planet. There's even a black market here. Bounty hunters and criminals sneak in here all the time to smuggle goods through and whatnot. The planet itself is called Great Korosa"

Mavis nodded slowly, "Whatever," she said, "I'm thinking about escaping from these guys after we land. Whenever we have the least amount of eyes watching us would be best."

"Okay," said Kolt. He was honestly more scared for himself than for Mavis. He already knew that Mavis was more than capable of taking care of herself. He just needed to make sure that he could stay alive. As the police cruiser flew closer to the surface, Mavis saw that nobody was actually outside in the open. Everyone on the surface seemed to be residing in glass tubes that criss-crossed the surface of the planet.

"There's lots of carbon monoxide in the air," said Kolt, "very toxic. Anyone who you see outside is a dead man. Even our best suits can't filter out all the carbon monoxide. It's just too much."

Mavis nodded, as she stared at the surrounding landscape. Earth really was beautiful. Here, the entire landscape was tinged blood-red. There were rivers of lava and molten lakes everywhere. It looked absolutely dreadful. Mavis remembered Paradise, and immediately, a pang of guilt flew through her. Hopefully Johnny had made a move by now.

The police cruiser eventually landed in a docking bay off the side. After landing, there was a loud hissing noise, as all the carbon monoxide was repelled out of the room. Then, the doors opened, and two guards pulled Mavis and Kolt out of the cruiser.

Mavis was pushed through the hallway, into the main glass tubes, and immediately saw why Kolt didn't like this place. All around the tubes of glass, were stands and wooden buildings. Aliens of all different races were yelling out to them, offering them prices and giving them suspicious looks.

The police officer forced his way through, holding up his badge so that people would make way. Mavis and Kolt turned a corner to see a less populated side of the tube. Mavis gripped her handcuffs. This was the time.

Before anyone even knew what was going on, the two police officers' necks had been snapped, and the leader was knocked out. Mavis sighed, as she threw her handcuffs away. "I was hoping that those handcuffs would provide a greater challenge." she said, unlocking Kolt's handcuffs for him.

The two of them quickly made their way back down the tubes before anyone could question them. "Where should we go?" asked Mavis, "I mean….we don't want to get spotted, do we?"

"No, of course not," said Kolt, "I know somewhere where we should be relatively safe. Here….ah, there we go."

Kolt led Mavis down a side tube, going through a wooden door, and into what looked exactly like a tavern. All around Mavis, aliens and what looked startlingly like humans sat around tables, or were standing and talking to each other.

"Careful," said Kolt, "this isn't a place a woman should be in. You want to stay alert in a place like this. People sometimes are pretty messed up."

Mavis nodded. She had already spotted some people around the tavern giving her side glances, and quickly averted her gaze straight forward. She didn't want to attract attention in a place like this.

Mavis and Kolt sat down at a table on one end of the tavern, and quickly began making plans for what to do next. Kolt seemed to have completely forgotten about his allegiance with the Nameless Discipline, and Mavis quickly addressed it.

"You don't seem too loyal to the Nameless Discipline," said Mavis, tilting her head a little to the left, "why is that? Did they do something?"

Kolt shifted uncomfortably in his seat, "I...question some methods that the nameless order uses in order to achieve their victories. It sometimes seems unnessecary. In all honesty, I never wanted to join their army. I was a doctor living in a village, before the Nameless Order began drafting for their military. When they came to me, I signed up to become a military doctor, and here I am."

Mavis nodded, right as a massive man slid into the same table as they were in, pushing Kolt to the side. He grinned, showing his teeth, two of which were metal. His arms were heavily tattooed, and he had a bushy mustache. "'Ello lady," he said, smiling, "mind if I have a drink with you? A beauty like you shouldn't be alone in a place like this."

Mavis looked at him distastefully, "I have company." she said coldly.

The man's smile faltered. He glanced to his side, where Kolt's skinny form was being crushed by him. "Oh, this?" the man laughed, "I wouldn't call him a _man_.". With that, he grabbed Kolt and shoved him out of the seat, laughing, "get lost, kid."

Kolt appeared to be trying to think of something diplomatic to say, but Mavis wasn't going to put up with it. She stood up, "Get lost," she seethed, "the last thing I need is someone as fat and as useless as you."

The man's laugh was quickly replaced by a scowl, "Wha' did you just call me?" he thundered, marching up to her, "you don't seem to understand your _place_ , woman!". He quickly brought his arm down to punch her-

There was a loud _boom_ , and a scream, as the man was blown backwards, smashing through the table and falling over. Immediately, the entire tavern grew silent. Mavis stared. She didn't _try_ to punch him _that_ hard. But even so, it looked as if the man was out cold.

Everyone in the tavern stared at Mavis as if she was a ghost. Mavis felt Kolt tugging on her arm, "Come on," he whispered, "we have to leave, before they-"

"That's my brother you just knocked out!" roared one man from the other end of the tavern. He looked similar to the man Mavis just knocked out, but was larger, and had many more tattoos. "You'll pay for that one!"

Immediately, the tavern began to form a ring around them, chanting "Fight! Fight! Fight!" over and over again. Kolt was forced back, a pair of larger men holding him back. "You're over now." Mavis heard one guy say to her, "When Carnage Cray tries, nobody can stop him."

Carnage Cray? That was a stupid name. Mavis watched as Cray faced her, cracking his knuckles. "Huh," he said, "how 'bout this. I win, I get to have you for one night. You win, you get to go free. Sounds good?"

Mavis watched him. "Sure." she said in a bored voice.

Cray grinned, "Shame, it would be a crime to harm someone as beautiful as you," he said, "but no matter. Prepare to be defeated!"

Cray ripped off his shirt, turned around, and-

"OOWOWOWOWOW!" screamed Carnage Cray. Mavis had appeared right in front of him, grabbing his hands and squeezing so hard that Cray was forced to his knees, "Please! Please stop! It hurts!"

Mavis hated people like Cray. People who thought they were superior from mere strength. She crushed Cray's hand, breaking every finger, causing him to scream with pain. Around her, Mavis heard people gasping in awe, and saw Kolt staring at her with wonder.

Mavis let go of Carnage Cray, letting him collapse onto the ground, sobbing. Mavis then grabbed him yet again, and threw him to the side, where he crashed into a table, and fell down, unconscious.

Mavis turned around, glaring at everyone else in the tavern. She walked over to Kolt, "Come on, we're leaving." said Mavis. As she walked towards the door, the people who were standing on either side of it fell back, not even looking at her straight in the eyes.

As the two of them walked through the glass tubes, this time straying away from the taverns, Mavis asked Kolt, "So how're we gonna get outta here? Can we steal a ship?"

"We don't have to steal one," said Kolt, "we can buy one. There's a black market here, as I've said before. We can go there and try to buy a ship from there. There're always a few on sale there."

"Alright then," said Mavis, following Kolt as he led the way to the black market, "but won't it cost money?" she asked, "I mean, we don't _have_ money, do we? Or maybe you do, you work for the military, after all."

Kolt shook his head, "No," he said, "I don't have money. But in a place like this, all you need is reputation. And with what you did back there," Kolt grinned, "you'll have one hell of a reputation from now on."

What both of them failed to realize was that they were missing someone. And Mavis only realized it then. Fubuki

* * *

B13948 had just finished reviewing the fuel cells that had been refuelled that day. The slaves that were on the ships were forced to work for 24 hours a day, no sleep, rest, or food in order to generate that much power from the Labor Crystal.

After executing a few slaves to show that he was serious, B13948 had returned to the bridge of the warship, informing Cedron that the fuel cells were ready. "Sir, the fuel cells have been completely recharged and are ready for lift," said B13948, "should I order immediate jump to warp?"

Cedron nodded, "Yes," he said, "they will not expect us to follow them. We will catch them off guard. According to our scanners, they warped to the Lucidena system?"

"That is correct." said B13948, "however, where in that system, we don't know."

Cedron nodded slowly, "Very well," he said, "we will begin with the innermost planet then. Start the warp drives immediately. We will catch them this time."


	81. Insanity

It was Mavis who realized it first. She suddenly doubled over, her eyes widening. Kolt stared at her, "You okay?" he asked. Mavis shook her head. Her extrasensory perception tunneled, searching the entire planet, until she found Fubuki, resting in an infirmary on the docking station. Around her, a group of police were talking.

"We forgot Fubuki…" murmured Mavis, "how could we forget her? Kolt, let's go and get that ship, I know where Fubuki is, but we'll need to get out of the planet to reach her."

"Is she in the orbital medical station?" asked Kolt, "that would make the most sense to be honest, then she would be safe while the police tested her blood and whatnot to find out where she came from without the threat of us."

"Yeah, she's there." said Mavis, "come on, let's go get a ship, fast."

The two of them hurried down a set of tubes, passing through four of them, before they finally made a turn onto the black market. All around them were people milling around near the stands, which were selling all sorts of things. Weapons, food, and other strange devices.

"Follow me." said Kolt, leading the way down the black market. Mavis got alot of funny glances from the aliens who were working there, but she ignored them. Soon they were standing in front of a stand shop. In the back, Mavis saw old ships and cruisers docked in a room.

"Welcome, welcome." said a human-like alien with an oily tone, "whad'ya guys need today, eh? Cruisers? Fighters? I got 'em all, believe me."

"We need a corvette, the cheapest you can get us." said Kolt, "preferably a small one too. We want it to be light. Armaments don't really matter for us."

"Alrighty," said the alien, "follow me, you'll find whatever ya like back here…"

Mavis and Kolt followed the alien to the back, where they were presented with dozens of ships. The smallest was a fighter, and the largest was a corvette. For the tiny room, it was actually alot. Mavis began walking down the aisles, looking at the ships, but the thought of Fubuki jolted her back.

But there was one problem. The prices were too high. Kolt leaned over to Mavis, "I don't have enough money for any of this," he whispered, "I only have enough for that one-man fighter. Which isn't enough, believe me."

Mavis saw the one-man fighter Kolt was pointing to. She sighed. If Techno was here, he would fix things up immediately. There wouldn't even be a problem. But even as Mavis stared at the one-man fighter, she suddenly had an idea. Why hadn't she thought of this before?

Mavis waved her hands, and the alien fell over, asleep. "Come on," she said to an awestruck Kolt, "we're getting out of here. Leave his body, he'll wave up and think that it's all a dream. He works in the black market anyways, nobody cares."

Kolt nodded, and Mavis began to scan the area for the best ship she could take. She finally chose a relatively small Corvette. It had a medical bay, five sleeping quarters, five guns, and had a decent maximum speed.

"C'mon," said Mavis, running onto the Corvette, "we don't have that much time. We have to get going. Now."

The two of them ran onto the Corvette, Mavis starting the engines. In front of them, the doors opened, to a separate room that must've been meant for removing carbon monoxide from the air. After they were sealed inside of that room, a second set of doors opened, that let them into the open air.

As Mavis used telekinesis to guide the corvette up and out of the atmosphere, she kept a specific eye out for the hangar. Her extrasensory perception informed her that it was directly above the area she was just in, so she flew the corvette directly up.

As the red clouds slowly broke into a black backdrop, Mavis realized she was in space. Looking around, she quickly spotted the docking station to her right. Without hesitating, Mavis steered the corvette towards the docking station, ignoring the warnings that were coming through her communications channel.

 _You have entered into a secured area. Turn your vehicle around or we will be forced to disable your ship!_

Mavis growled. She clenched her fists, and all around her, she saw the gun turrets that were installed on the docking station get completely crushed, exploding in space. She quickly guided the corvette over to the docking zone, where she landed in an empty area that was supposed to be reserved for military officials.

Mavis jumped out of the corvette, turning around in time to see a dozen alien guards run out of a door opposite to her. They fired, hitting Mavis a few times. Mavis swiped her hands, choking all the aliens in a single blow. She motioned to Kolt, who ran over to the door and tried to open it.

"Ugh...it's locked." said Kolt, tugging on the handles. "Give it to me." said Mavis. She grabbed the doors, and ripped it off its hinges, throwing it aside. Behind the door, more guards and police officers were waiting for them. Mavis shoved Kolt aside right as they opened fire on her. Mavis tanked all the shots, not even feeling a thing. She walked forwards, and with a stroke of her hand, had thrown all the officers and guards aside.

Mavis's eyes glowed, her extrasensory perception kicking in. Her vision flew through the many hallways and aisles of the station, until finally, she found the medical facility. "Hold on," said Mavis, grabbing hold of Kolt's arm, "we're gonna sprint this one."

Kolt stared at her, "Um-"

Before he could say anything else, Mavis had jumped to 9c (9x the speed of light), and less than a picosecond later, they were standing in front of the medical bay doors. Mavis let go of Kolt, who stumbled back, "Woah." he said, "that was...fast."

Mavis didn't wait for more compliments. She kicked down the door, flying into the room. All around her, were beds filled with sick or wounded aliens. The doctors jumped when she entered, some of them running away. Mavis paid them no attention. She ran through the hallways at insane speeds, going through each door, until finally she saw Fubuki on one of the beds in the back.

Mavis grabbed Kolt, "What've they done to her?" she asked, "Did they do anything bad? You're the medical officer. _Tell me_!"

Kolt scrambled around, reading the dials and the computer that was stationed right next to Fubuki, "She's stabilized right now...but...oh no…."

"What?" asked Mavis, "What is it? What's so bad? Is Fubuki okay?"

"The medical officers here couldn't recognize her species," said Kolt, "so, in order to prevent foreign species contamination, they were just attempting to euthanize her right before you came in."

"Euthanize? Doesn't that mean that….they were trying to kill Fubuki?" asked Mavis. She was starting to shake with both fear and anger. If she lost Fubuki….she didn't know what she would do. She was family by now to her.

"Yes, essentially, they were trying to kill Fubuki," said Kolt, "but luckily, since you came in at that very moment, they were only able to inject Fubuki with 25% of the chemical solution that they meant to inject her with, so she's fine. However, she will be delayed in waking up."

"Okay." Mavis's shoulders slumped in relief. As long as Fubuki was fine, she wouldn't have to worry. Mavis grabbed Fubuki, turning back to Kolt, "come on, let's go back to the Corvette.". With that, Mavis had grabbed Kolt, and had rocketed back to the Corvette. As Mavis laid Fubuki down on the medical bed carefully, she heard people running into the ship. Without really realizing it, Mavis grabbed one soldier by the neck telekinetically and threw him against the wall right as he entered into the medical bay.

Two more police officers were waiting outside. Mavis threw both of them back, chucking them out of the entrance of the Corvette. Right as Mavis was about to enter into the cockpit, however, a voice yelled, "STOP RIGHT THERE!"

Mavis turned around, to see a guard holding Kolt in a headlock. There was a gun pointed right at Kolt's head. "I'm not screwing around here!" yelled the soldiers, burrowing the barrel of the gun further into Kolt's head, "if you make one move, he's dead."

Mavis sighed. She grabbed the soldier by the legs, and threw him out the corvette, making sure to smash his head over the top of the ceiling before she did that. She hated people who took hostages. It kinda reminded her of Olyra.

Mavis ran over to Kolt, helping him up. Kolt muttered, "thanks." and then retreated into the cockpit. Mavis followed. After closing the door to the cockpit, Mavis went over to the controls and began flipping switches and pressing buttons. Soon enough, the Corvette was flying away from the docking station, with Fubuki safely in its medical bay.

"Alright," murmured Mavis, pressing a few more buttons, "I've got coordinates set for Earth, we can start the warp drive once it's warmed up a little-"

 _Warning: Ship coming out of hyperspace_

The warning came without any prelude. Immediately afterwards, a fleet of at least 200 ships appeared right in front of them. Mavis recognized it immediately. They were ships from the Nameless Discipline. They had followed her.

"Crap." muttered Mavis, stepping back in surprise for a second, "Can't we still warp to Earth?"

"No," said Kolt, "As long as they remain in that position, there's no way to return to Earth. We'll have to go around them. But even if you do warp, I don't think that you'll be able to get far before they tear you out of warp."

"What?" asked Mavis, "how would they take us out of warp?"

"Those ships," Kolt pointed to one particular ship in the fleet. It was smaller than the others, and was shaped in a perfect sphere, "that's an Interceptor Warship. It has special technology that allows it to pull ships out of warp."

"Well, crap." muttered Mavis, "D'ya think that they know we're on this ship?"

"Probably not right now," said Kolt, "but once they run bio scans, they will know that we're on this ship. And they'll open fire as well."

Sure enough, the warships suddenly fixated their cannons on their Corvette. Mavis immediately grabbed the throttle, and pushed hard to the left, right as the cannons fired. Luckily, it was only the front ships that fired, so only about 40 shells were launched at them. All of them missed, Mavis's reaction time and reflexes guiding the ship.

"We won't be able to get through!" yelled Kolt, "Mavis, turn back, now! Before we get hit! Oh my...we really are going to die."

Mavis was going on the offensive, diverting all power to the engines, and charging the ship. The Corvette might've been small and fragile, but it was faster and way more maneuverable. Mavis zipped to the far right, right as the ships fired again. This time, one shell exploded near the ship, causing it to shake slightly.

Mavis grit her teeth, and went faster, flying directly underneath the warships, right as they fired yet again-

 _BOOOM_

The entire ship shook, and according to the displays on the front, one of their engines were completely out. Their speed had been reduced by 57%. That wasn't good, judging from the fact that speed was their only advantage.

"We're getting caught in the gravitational pull of the sun!" yelled Kolt, "and we can't escape it! We're growing closer and closer to the sun now, oh crap, oh crap…"

Another shot hit. Mavis got up, "Come on," she said to Kolt, "we're gonna get Fubuki, and we're gonna jump out of the ship."

Kolt stared at her as if she was insane, which Mavis might've been, "What?" he asked, "did you just say that we're gonna be _jumping out of the corvette_? That's insane, even for you!"

Mavis ignored him, marching to the back and grabbing Fubuki. She created an bubble of compressed oxygen using telekinesis for her, and did the same for Kolt. She knew that she could breath in space, so she should be fine. As a third shell made direct contact with the Corvette, it's engines completely failed, shutting down.

They were dead in space.

Mavis ran over to the entrance, unlocking the bolts, despite the pleas of Kolt, and finally, forced the door open, causing the three of them to instantly be sucked out into space.


	82. Threats

The one thing that always caught Mavis off-guard about space was the silence. The deafening, horrible silence that always followed whenever shooting out into the void. Around Mavis, she saw explosions, and felt the heat of them, but didn't hear them. It was strange.

Mavis flew over to Kolt, grabbing him, and also grabbed Fubuki by the arm, keeping them stable with her. Behind them, the warships continued their bombardment of the corvette, either because they didn't notice them, or because they just wanted to destroy the ship for some reason.

Kolt was breathing fine, and so was Fubuki, so Mavis wasn't too worried about them. They were safe as long as they held onto her, which Kolt was, very tightly as well. He looked afraid, and appeared to be trying to say something, but Mavis couldn't hear him, obviously.

Behind Mavis, she felt, with her extrasensory perception, the guns of the warships suddenly swivel and turn towards her. They had noticed where they were. Without warning, Mavis accelerated, blasting off towards the planet beneath her. She knew that the carbon monoxide gas would harm them, but as long as the air bubbles stayed around Kolt and Fubuki, they should be fine. And Mavis had faith in her ability to survive in toxic gas.

As another shell exploded near her, Mavis accelerated yet again, until she was faster than all the shells. But the warships that were chasing her weren't done yet. All around Mavis, more warships warped in, encasing her in a circle. The bombardments became more intense, as more and more ships began firing at her.

Mavis finally decided to screw it. She angled herself downwards, flying straight for the planet, breaking through its cloudline, flying down, and colliding straight with the planet. Instead of stopping, however, Mavis continued going. She literally punched her way through the crust of the planet, tunneling downwards at incredible speeds. As she went deeper and deeper, Mavis noticed the pressure increasing, as well as the temperature. Quickly, she formed a protective sphere around Fubuki and Kolt, and continued tunneling down.

At one point, Mavis thought that she felt gravity reverse on her, but she didn't stop to investigate. Within thirty seconds, Mavis had tunneled through the entire planet, blasting out on the other end and flying through the atmosphere, and back into space. Behind her, Mavis saw the ring of warships. She grinned. They would only figure out what had happened after they decided to investigate themselves. They were probably under the impression that she had flown down and hidden on the planet.

Well that was partly true. She was going to hide on a planet. Just not that one. Mavis concentrated, her extrasensory perception zooming out onto the entire solar system. She pinpointed the exact location of the second planet, and zoomed off towards there, traveling at 6c.

A few seconds later, Mavis jumped out of lightspeed, flying over the second planet. This specific planet looked much better than the other one. This one, rather than having a black surface, with lava lakes and fiery rivers flowing through it, had a greyish-green surface. It looked as if it might even support life.

Mavis flew down. As she drew near to the planet, she quickly noticed an orbital docking station, similar to that of the other planet, except this one had two massive turbines on the side of it. It was then when Mavis noticed something. This planet had a faint green aura surrounding it. Mavis flew down to the aura, and slowly reached out with her hand, touching the light that emanated from the aura.

It was solid.

Mavis drew back her fist, and punched, as hard as she could. The entire surface of the planet instantly lit up, as the aura received and tried to absorb the punch. But the force of it was too much. At the docking stations, the two turbines that on the docking station suddenly exploded, sending metal and shrapnel flying everywhere. Mavis flew right through the broken shields, flying down towards the planet.

As she broke the cloudline, she saw the weirdest piece of land that she's ever laid her eyes on. The entire surface of the planet was covered with grassland, with random spires of rock jutting up here and there. There was nothing but grass and the massive spires of rock to be seen for miles around.

Mavis landed on top of one of the spires of rock, setting Fubuki and Kolt down on the ground carefully. Kolt looked absolutely terrified. His face was chalk-white, and he was breathing very hard. "What the hell…" he murmured, staring at Mavis, "how strong _are_ you?"

Mavis brushed some dust off her clothes, "Pretty strong, apparently." she said dismissively, "anyways, how's Fubuki doing? You're the doctor here, tell me what's happening."

Kolt went over to Fubuki, taking out a medical kit from his bag, which he had slung across his back the entire time. Mavis didn't even see the bag before now. Kolt grabbed some tools from it, and began to get Fubuki's pulse and heartbeat.

"She's fine." said Kolt, "whatever you've protected us with, it seemed to have worked. What _happened_ , anyways? I couldn't keep track of what was going on, you were going way too fast for me to tell."

Mavis shrugged, "I punched my way through the other planet to escape the warships," she said, waving her hands dismissively, "then I accelerated myself until we got this planet, punched through the planetary shield, and got in here."

"You _what?_ " said Kolt, jumping up, "you punched the planetary shield? How did you...we're gonna be dead for sure this time…"

"What?" asked Mavis, "it's not as if the people who're chasing us know that we're here right now. And when they do figure that out, we'll be long gone, don't worry. I'm fast enough to evade them right now."

"It's not that!" said Kolt, "we have to go, now. The people from the space station are gonna be here any moment! They would've tracked you once you reached the planet's atmosphere! They probably know where we are right now."

"Relax," said Mavis, telekinetically forcing Kolt to sit, "damn, you're way too paranoid. I'm too fast for their sensors to track. I think, at least."

"You think?" Kolt looked more worried than ever, "did you not decelerate once you reached the atmosphere? Or did you only slow down once we reached the surface?"

"Well…" Mavis paused, thinking. She had to stop to punch the shield, and she _did_ decelerate once they reached the atmosphere, anticipating the landing, but at the same time, she was sure that she was still going too fast for any tracker to lock onto her. "I doubt the sensor's could've locked onto my speed." she said dismissively in the end.

Kolt rolled his eyes, plopping back down onto the ground, not wanting to argue. "So tell me…" said Kolt slowly, "how did you get so strong? No way you were born like this…"

Mavis winced. She had forgotten about her past temporarily. About Johnny. About Techno. She began to tell Kolt about her story. How she was born in a castle, how she was raised by an overprotective dad, how she eventually met Johnny. Mavis paused a little when she mentioned Johnny. It brought her pain to think of him, and what he was doing right now. Maybe he thought that she was dead. Mavis continued talking, telling Kolt about how she and Johnny defeated the Supreme Leader, how Tiberius had killed Johnny, and how Mavis had traveled back in time to steal the cure of death, and how Johnny was brought back to life. She told him about how she had killed George, and how Fubuki got poisoned, that being the reason of Fubuki's current condition.

Kolt sat down, slightly in awe, "You've seen everything." he said, his eyes wide, "I mean, I don't know anyone who's accomplished more than you."

Mavis scowled. "My accomplishments give me nothing but pain." she said bitterly, staring at the horizon, "sometimes, I dream about the hotel. Just...if I could press a magical button that brought me back in time, before the war, before the Supreme Leader, then I would. Without hesitation. My strength is the only good thing that I've gained from it all."

Kolt nodded solemnly, "I hate it when people turn my life upside down," he agreed, "I mean, I used to live a pretty peaceful life. Then the army started drafting for personnel to serve in the Nameless Discipline. So here I am."

Kolt threw a rock down the cliff bitterly, then turned back to Mavis, "The prophecy is true about one thing then," he said, "you are incredibly powerful, and you are therefore the one to defeat the Nameless Discipline. I just hope that this all pays off in the end…"

Mavis sighed. She was about to say something, when her extrasensory perception suddenly kicked in. She sat straight up. "Uh oh." she murmured, staring into the distance. Her vision was tunneling, zooming into a missile that was flying towards them.

"We have to move, now!" yelled Mavis. Without warning, she grabbed Fubuki and Kolt telekinetically, and jumped off the cliff, making Fubuki and Kolt land safely behind her. Above them, the spire of rock they were just on exploded, sending fragments of rock and stone flying everywhere.

"You're right," said Mavis, "they tracked me. We gotta go, now. You know how to fire a gun?" she asked. Her vision tunneled again, showing a dozen cruisers flying down to their position from all angles. Some of them were armed with nasty looking guns.

"I-I've only fired a gun once." said Kolt hesitantly, "I've never actually seen real action before I met you-"

"You gotta be kidding me." growled Mavis. She telekinetically grabbed a gun from a soldier in one of the cruisers, forcing it out the air vent of the cruiser, and shoving it into Kolt's hands. "You're a damn soldier. Point your gun at their face and pull the trigger. Nice, easy, simple."

Kolt shakily grabbed the weapon, loading it. He looked more terrified than ever. Around them, the cruisers came into view, flying from the clouds towards them. Most of them, luckily, were local police vehicles, but some were also military.

Mavis didn't hesitate to try to defend herself. She immediately took the offensive. She jumped, flying up towards the lead cruiser, and destroying it with a single telekinetic blast. She then grabbed a second cruiser and smashed it into a third one. Out of the four remaining cruisers, two landed and two continued to fire at Mavis.

Mavis easily dodged the shots that were coming at her. Landing on one of the cruisers that were firing at her, she crushed it into a cube that was 1 cm by 1 cm by 1 cm, then jumped onto the other cruiser, killing everyone in it using her life force powers.

On the ground however, Kolt wasn't doing so well. He had taken position behind a stone spire, and was pinned down under heavy fire from the soldiers who were exiting the cruisers that had landed.

Mavis rocketed down, straight at the soldiers. Her collision with the ground was enough to release a shockwave that knocked all the soldiers back, as well as blow a fifteen-feet deep crater into the ground. Mavis jumped up, disappearing as her speed kicked in. All around the area, soldiers began to randomly get killed by an unseen force. Kolt knew that it was actually Mavis, traveling so fast that she couldn't even be seen.

After all the soldiers were killed, Mavis reappeared in front of Kolt, "Come on," she said, "let's board their cruiser, and get outta-"

"LOOK OUT!" yelled Kolt, jumping back, right as another missile came out of the clouds, streaking straight for them. Mavis's reaction time didn't give the missile a chance. Less than a quark time later, the missile had exploded.

Mavis watched as warships began to come out of the clouds. Massive warships. The same ones that were chasing her near the first planet. Mavis cursed. How did they get here so fast? Maybe she really wasn't as fast as she thought she was.

Mavis shoved Kolt and Fubuki out of the way right as the cannons of the warships fired. Mavis disappeared, as 238 high-explosive, 37-inch shells collided with her. There was a massive fireball that exploded outwards, disintegrating all the grass around Mavis. But a few seconds later, as the smoke cleared, Kolt saw Mavis still standing there, completely unscathed.

* * *

"Our 37-inch shells had no effect on her," said B13948, "should I order a second barrage, or send out our battle droids? It's your choice, sir. We're just waiting on orders right now."

"Order out our battle droids," said Cedron, "capture the girl, don't kill her. Remember, it has to be me to make the kill. Or else the prophecy wouldn't have come true. And if the prophecy doesn't come true, then we are doomed."

"Yes sir." said B13948, "sending out battle droids to engage target now.

In front of them, through the bridge windows, Cedron saw troop transports flying over to Mavis's position and dropping off droids. Cedron watched intently, as Mavis vanished, annihilating droid platoon after droid platoon. It looked so easy for her, that it seemed like an insult to even send the battle droids after her. Within 45 seconds, all 15 platoons of droids had been destroyed. Cedron waved his hands again, and more were deployed.

"Give me a report on the girl's current status." said Cedron, turning to B13948, "anything interesting?"

"The girl, or Mavis, appears to be...relatively bored, actually," said B13948, "her heart rate is very low, and she has literally no adrenaline right now. It's as if she actually wants to go to sleep. As for her current logistics, she's going at Mach 65,000 right now, and….well, our trackers just lost her."

Cedron nodded. "We won't be able to capture her," he said, "so let's see how she reacts if we threaten to destroy something that she's passionate about. Something that she's very close to. Something that would cause her to go over the edge…something that would make her come to us."

Cedron smiled, "Why don't we destroy Earth…"


	83. The Coming Battle

Mavis had just finished dismantling another platoon of droids when it happened. All the droids that were attacking her suddenly stopped marching forward, and instead began to retreat, going back into their transports and flying away. Mavis didn't bother pursuing them. Didn't do her any good.

In front of her, the warships weren't aiming their cannons either, so something must've been going on. Then a voice suddenly came onto an intercom, that blared down at Mavis from the fleet. It seemed as if the voice was being broadcasted by every ship, rather than only one.

 _Well done, Mavis Dracula. You are indeed the one who I have been seeking through the prophecies. Since you will clearly not come willingly to face me, nor will you be defeated by my minions, I have decided to give you some...motivation. I have a weapon that can destroy your precious planet of Earth. A weapon that can wipe it off the face of the universe. If you want Earth to survive, I would suggest complying with my wishes. Here is what will happen. You will return to Earth's orbit, where you will find a cube. It is easily recognizable, and I have faith that you will be able to find it. You will enter into this cube, with nobody but yourself. There, I will face you in a battle. You have one week to comply. Failure to comply will lead to the destruction of your home planet. I do hope you make the right choice._

With that, the intercom cut off, and the entire fleet began to pull away from the planet. Soon enough, they had warped away, probably to Earth.

Mavis slowly turned back to Kolt, who was watching her nervously. He shifted uncomfortably, "So...we're going back to Earth, I guess?"

Mavis glared at him, "Is that even a question?" she asked bitterly, "yes, we're heading back to Earth. Come on, let's take one of those police cruisers. They probably have warp drives, and they're decently armed, so in case it's just all a trap to get us killed…"

Kolt nodded, grabbing Fubuki's body and carrying it into one of the landed police cruisers. After setting her down safely on a medical bed, Mavis ran aboard, shutting the door behind her and running to the cockpit, where she began flipping switches and pressing buttons, getting the engines fired up and the ship ready for warp.

As Mavis finally turned on the engines, and the police cruiser began to slowly fly upwards, Mavis thought about Johnny. He was still on Earth. She had to defend the planet, no matter what. She wasn't going to let Johnny die again.

As Mavis left the planet's atmosphere, she looked around with her extrasensory perception, to find that the fleet was already gone. It had already warped off to Earth. Mavis frowned. Whatever this prophecy was, the aliens certainly had faith in it. Mavis set warp coordinates to Earth, also arming the cruiser's guns in case it was a trap, which was quite likely. Behind Mavis, Kolt looked as scared as ever.

The police cruiser's warp drives ignited, and the next thing Mavis knew, she was in warp, flying faster than light, flying straight to Earth. Mavis gripped her seat. She was doing this mainly for Johnny to be honest. Earth wasn't much to her at this point. At the current moment, Earth wasn't actually much to her. The only things she cared about was Johnny and Paradise. Everything else could burn. Everything else had no use to her. Everything else was weak.

Kolt stared at Mavis, "Uh…." he said, watching Mavis's expression, "is it normal for your eyes to turn...black?". Mavis blinked. Her eyes returned to their usual bright blue color. "Sorry," she muttered, "I don't have much control over that aspect of my power…"

"Okay." said Kolt, turning back to his controls. He straightened up, "You seem quite relaxed for a person who's about to save your own planet. Are you always like this? I mean, I've never seen you actually be excited during a battle."

Mavis hesitated. "Once you fight enough battles, they all become the same. At least for me. I'm not sure about Fubuki, or Johnny. Nobody is ever strong enough to defeat me. Ever since I defeated Tiberius, nobody has posed a single challenge for me. I've defeated them without putting in any effort at all. I don't think that this'll be any different."

"Well," Kolt turned back to the cockpit windows, "the leader of the Nameless Discipline is the one who wants to fight you. He's very strong as well. He's claimed that he's never lost a single battle before, which I don't doubt."

"Hmph," Mavis snorted, "everyone claims that. Everyone thinks they're strong. In the end, though, they're just weak. The only reason I'm coming back to Earth is to save Johnny and my home island."

Kolt tilted his head, "Do you not care for the other lives that are on the planet?" he asked, kind of surprised, "You seem like a person who would defend a planet to save lives, not for personal reasons. I mean, it _is_ your planet, so-"

"Earth has mostly nothing to do with me," said Mavis coldly, "the only thing I care about is Johnny, and Paradise. I don't give a crap if everything else dies. The only thing I know is that Johnny would do the same for me.". With bitterness, Mavis realized that she didn't like Earth. It was nothing but a place of pain for her. Nothing but a cauldron of bad memories.

Kolt looked surprised at Mavis's answer, but turned back to the display nonetheless, "So...anyways, when you kill me, just saying, I would prefer you to snap my neck. Nice, easy, painless. And when I don't see it coming as well. That would be preferable."

Mavis glanced at him, "What makes you think that I'll kill you?" she asked, "you've done nothing to make me suspicious, have you? You've kept Fubuki alive, at least."

"Yeah, but see," Kolt scratched the back of his head, "If you _are_ gonna kill me, then just saying, I would prefer a neck snap to anything else. I just wanted to get that out in case you were planning that any time soon. I'm not _that_ useful to you, anyways."

Mavis didn't say anything. Wherever this guy was raised, it seemed to be in a place that taught him that foreign species always wanted to exploit him. Whatever. Mavis decided to play along with it. She waved her hands dismissively, "Whatever," she said, "you'll be fine, as long as you don't betray us."

"Well that's a relief." said Kolt. Mavis could hear the disbelief in his voice, but she kept it to herself. She wasn't going to kill Kolt. He was a decent person. As for Johnny….Mavis began to grow worried. What if he had been taken by the Nameless Discipline? What if he was being tortured? What if he was already dead?

But Johnny wasn't dead. Mavis could feel that much. When it came to Johnny, he had a sixth sense of sorts that allowed her to monitor his life force no matter how far away she was or how fast she was traveling. Johnny was still alive. Mavis knew that much.

Mavis sighed, getting up. "I'm gonna sleep a tiny bit," she said sleepily, "when are we gonna reach Earth?"

Kolt glanced at the display screen, "About…" he squinted his eyes, "four hours. Damn. These warp drives are much weaker than that of the corvette we came here in."

Mavis yawned, "Yeah," she said, "well, we still got plenty of time, and I'm sleepy. Wake me up when we reach the solar system, alright?" she asked.

"Okay." said Kolt passively, watching Mavis retreat back into the sleeping quarters. His mind was racing. Mavis was awfully kind for an alien. She was entrusting him to the entire ship while she slept. Perhaps his education really was wrong….

Whatever. Kolt turned back to the control panel. He wasn't going to betray Mavis right now. He didn't want to die, after all.

* * *

Mavis was in a room. All around her, were glass walls, each one showing a reflection of her. On the other end of the room, was a alien. The alien looked dreadful. She had tentacles coming from her face, and eight pairs of unblinking eyes. Her face was withered and old, as if someone had blowtorched a log and then called it a face.

"Step forward." said the alien. Her voice resonated, echoing even though the room was too small for an echo to be heard in. Mavis knew it was a dream, so she didn't bother trying to fight against her. She stepped forward.

"Mavis Dracula…" the alien's voice was old and wispy, but somehow strong and surprisingly creepy as well, "you've traveled so far...gained so much...I have foreseen it all. You were all a part of my prophecy. You all played as pawns in my little game of chess…"

Mavis tilted her head, "You're the seer?" she asked, her own voice resonating a little, "you're the person who told Cedron that I was going to destroy the Nameless Discipline? Was that you?"

Mavis knew that it was just a dream, but that served as little comfort towards her. She had learned a long time ago that dreams were to be taken seriously. Most of the times for Mavis, they were very real.

"I am indeed the seer," said the alien, "and yes, I was the one who told Cedron that you would bring doom and chaos to his precious little faction. I did not lie. You would have, had I not told Cedron about it. He was already planning on an invasion of Earth. If he did that, then I foresaw that you would defeat his forces and cause him to retreat."

"But…" Mavis watched the seer, "you've ruined my life," she hissed, "I was just done with defeating George, and you decide to throw all this bullcrap at me? Really?"

The seer sighed, "I do not create the future, I simply see it. You humans are blind to the gift of future sight. You must listen to me, Mavis, for I bring news for you specifically today. News that may change alot of what you do."

Mavis leaned forward, "What?" she asked. Her eyes were hungry. "What have you seen?"

"The battle that you are about to enter…" the seer hissed as she laughed, "It will be a grave loss for you. Perhaps not death, but a grave loss indeed. You have taken _much_ for granted, Mavis Dracula."

Mavis stared at her. "You lie," she said, her eyes narrowing, "I am never defeated in battle. I never lose. I never die. Especially not if Johnny's life is at stake. Whoever this Cedron is, he's about to die when I enter into his little cube."

"Oh, the ignorance…" The seer laughed, "Look at what you've become, Mavis Dracula. Do you not think that you can become stronger? Do you truly think that this is your limit? You aren't even _close_ to the peak of your potential."

All around Mavis, the mirrors began to show a different form of Mavis. There was a 1-day old Mavis, still crying and squirming around on the ground. There was a 1 year-old Mavis, crawling around on the floor. There was a 5 year-old Mavis, rolling around on the carpet, then a 50 year-old Mavis, standing up, more confident, but at the same time, Mavis knew that she was weak. Then there was a 118 year-old Mavis, standing confidently, but she was still weak. With pain, Mavis realized that she had always been weak. In a few years, when she looked back at herself now, would she be just as weak?

"Why do you care?" Mavis turned to the seer, "you've already said that I will be defeated by Cedron. Why show me my potential if, according to you, that potential will never be unlocked? What's the point of putting in the effort of showing me all this?"

"Oh, I never said that you will face a physical defeat," said the seer, "I only said that you would be defeated. Anyways, it's about time for you. Good luck."

The seer swiped his hands, and the dream slowly faded away, Mavis's vision turning black slowly….

* * *

"We're almost there," said Kolt, when Mavis entered into the cockpit, "you actually came in at just the right moment. Here we go…"

Kolt pulled a lever. He seemed to have been trying to figure out how to work the controls of the cruiser. Immediately, the police cruiser came out of warp, right in front of Earth. Mavis immediately saw the problem.

An even larger fleet of ship surrounded Earth, bearing down on the planet with their guns. In the center of the fleet, was a massive ship, larger than everything else around it. On the front of it was a massive incineration cannon, with was glowing with energy. Mavis gripped the back of her seat hard. So this was how they would destroy Earth.

Mavis also spotted the cube. It was perfectly white, and perfectly cubical, floating in orbit to the side of the fleet. As the police cruiser approached it, Mavis saw the massive cannons armed on the warships, but none of them were pointing at her. So maybe this wasn't a trap after all.

Mavis spotted a docking station on the side of the cube, and immediately docked there, flying through the ray shields that prevented decompression, and cutting the engines. On the other end, a door opened, leading into the cube. Mavis was about to walk out of the cruiser, when she turned back to Kolt and said to him, "Stay in the ship. If they start firing that incineration cannon, warp away. Don't wait for me."

Kolt looked terrified at doing this, but nodded, "Okay," he murmured, "And Mavis," Mavis turned around to look at him, "Good luck." he said, a little shakily.


	84. Reunion

Mavis walked briskly over to the door on the other end of the docking station, not looking back. She knew that Kolt would be fine, and that Fubuki was safe in Kolt's hands. After all, he was a medical officer.

Mavis walked through the door, into a hallway. Behind her, the door closed shut, locking behind her. The entire hallway was bright, even though there appeared to be no source of light. Mavis walked down the hallway, into the main cube. There, the hallway opened up into a massive room. The ceiling was at least twenty stories above her, and 400 meters away from her, standing on the other side of the room, was a person, who walked towards her.

Mavis watched the person approach, her muscles tensing. She would be ready if this person decided to attack. He was wearing a white chestplate, with a black robe underneath it. He didn't appear to have a weapon, but Mavis knew that he probably had some other way of inflicting damage upon a target.

"Welcome," said the person, "My name is Cedron, leader of the Nameless Discipline.". His voice was regal and deep, kind of like what you would expect a king to speak like, "I have searched for you for so long...and now, you are finally here."

Mavis watched Cedron closely, not moving, but ready to move. "I have seen you do combat in front of my very own eyes," continued Cedron, "you have impressed me with your ability to fight. But no matter, I am still stronger. Your telekinesis, your speed, your reaction time is all dwarfed by mine."

Mavis saw the attack coming from a mile away. She rolled out of the way right as a crackle of electricity turned the area she was just standing in to a pile of ash. Cedron didn't stop his attack there, he roared, charging forward, attacking Mavis from all angles. Mavis's reaction time kept up, and she was able to block all of his attacks.

Mavis was confused. Cedron was supposed to be a powerful opponent, but he was only stronger than Tiberius. Still not much compared to her, even though he was the strongest Mavis has faced so far. Cedron appeared above her and kicked downwards, but Mavis vanished at the last second, reappearing a few feet away.

Cedron paused for a moment, standing back up. "You are fast," he said, grudgingly nodding, "however, the seer has promised me that I would be the one to save the Nameless Discipline. You will be defeated by me."

Cedron rocketed off towards Mavis, going at Mach 72,000, speeding straight at Mavis, but Mavis's reaction time was too fast. Mavis dodged the attack, grabbing Cedron and smashing him against the wall, then throwing him back to the ground. As he was falling to the ground, however, Cedron vanished. Mavis didn't even bother to block his next attack.

A ball of energy roared at her, blasting her into the wall, and turning the place she was just standing into a melted glass sludge. Mavis got back up, dusting off her clothes. She didn't even feel anything from that attack.

"Heh, you are a durable one!" Cedron appeared right behind Mavis, punching her in the face. Mavis went flying back, smashing against another wall. This time, as she got back up, she sighed. As Cedron went in for another attack, Mavis's arm shot out, intercepting Cedron's attack and blasting him back.

As Cedron was flying back, he stabilized himself in the air, and flew back towards Mavis. Mavis vanished at the last second, jumping out of the way and reappearing behind Cedron. This time, she blasted him back so hard that the entire wall of the cube broke open, sucking both of them out into space.

Mavis's vision straightened. She saw Cedron, still stabilizing himself, and flew at him. At the last second, however, Cedron formed a telekinetic barrier between himself and Mavis, deflecting Mavis's attack. This surprised her. Maybe Cedron was strong.

Around them, the warships noticed what was going on, and had their guns trained on Mavis, but didn't dare fire in case of harming Cedron. So the warships instead formed a ring around the two of them, confining them to a particular space.

Mavis and Cedron were nothing but a blur to everyone else. The only thing they could see were temporary flashes of light, as the two of them battled on, and the explosions that happened randomly.

Although the people on the warships didn't know this, Mavis was now taking the offensive. She had anticipated Cedron to be very strong, but now that she was putting more pressure on him, Cedron was being forced into a defensive position, and only had enough energy to defend himself.

Cedron was strong. Just not as strong as Mavis was anticipating. He was fast enough to block Mavis's attack, but only that strong. Mavis attacked with such frequency that Cedron couldn't get any attack out. As Cedron was forced back towards the planet, he began to feel the tug of the planet's gravitational pull on him.

Cedron growled. He couldn't stay on the defensive forever. As Mavis was drawing back for another attack, she turned back to see four Cedrons in front of her. Each one looked identical. They all charged at Mavis.

Caught off guard, Mavis pulled back, dodging the attacks that came from all four of them. She released a telekinetic blast outwards, one that grabbed all the Cedron clones and smashed them against each other. Slowly, the clones flickered away, leaving only the real one left.

Cedron growled. He was starting to doubt his ability to kill Mavis….he shook his head. He couldn't get doubts about his ability at this point. He had to focus on what the prophecy had told him what he would do. He had to kill Mavis. He had no choice.

Cedron pressed a button on his arm panel. Immediately, all around them, the fleet began warping away. Mavis watched them, a confused look on her face. Why was the fleet retreating? It was then when Mavis saw something. A bright buildup of light, starting in Cedron's hands.

Mavis only had enough time to summon up a telekinetic barrier before Cedron released a massive beam of light that flew straight at her. Mavis's shield immediately crumpled, and she was blasted into the Earth, crashing into a piece of land in South America, being blasted down so hard that she went through the Outer Core.

Cedron floated there, still in Earth's orbit, breathing hard. Mavis was indeed strong...but in the end, he still defeated her. His armor began to dim, his energy receding, and he pressed another button on his wrist controls. To the side, the incinerator began to charge up, glowing brighter and brighter. Cedron had never planned on letting Earth live. Mavis was down there somewhere. If she was still alive, then this would surely kill her.

To the side, a police cruiser suddenly flew out of the cube. Cedron noticed it, but paid it no attention. Whoever was in it was of no interest to him, anyways. The police cruiser charged up, then warped away, right as the incinerator cannon fired.

There was a sudden, bright flash of light, which temporarily blinded everyone in the vicinity. When the light died down, there was...nothing. Nothing remained of Earth, but a bunch of burnt up rocks and dust. Cedron smiled. The prophecy was complete. He had killed Mavis.

But he was wrong.

"No…." Cedron turned around, to see Mavis flying a few hundred meters away from him. Even though it was space, Mavis's voice somehow still carried through. Cedron stared. How had she survived? How powerful _was_ she?

Mavis was breathing hard. Her eyes began to glow. She clutched her chest, as she felt billions of lives dying, all at the same time. To Mavis, it felt like a huge emptiness, a void of life. Johnny must've been amongst them. Mavis slowly turned to Cedron. Her eyes were black.

Next thing Cedron knew, Mavis had appeared behind him, grabbing him and throwing him against an asteroid so hard that Cedron smashed right through it. Cedron formed a telekinetic shield, but it wasn't enough to stop Mavis. Mavis appeared in front of Cedron, her mere presence breaking the shield. She telekinetically grabbed Cedron, and flung him at the sun.

That's when multiple things happened. First, the incinerator cannon warped away. The second thing that happened was the reemergence of two warships. They appeared to be fighting each other. As Mavis watched, she saw one warship fire on the other one, destroying its bridge. Behind these two ships, four more warships appeared, also firing on the one that had just blown up the other ship's bridge.

But Mavis's extrasensory perception had kicked in, and what she saw made her happier than anything else she had ever seen. Johnny and Techno, in the bridge of the warship that had opened fire. In less than a picosecond, Mavis was in the bridge of that ship, catching Johnny and Techno off guard.

"Woah! Mavis!" said Johnny, "where did you-"

Johnny was silenced as he received a bone-crushing hug from Mavis. Techno was currently at the control panels, and turned back to them, "Warp drives are ready," he said, right as another shell collided with the warship, "should I launch?"

"Yes, launch immediately." said Johnny. The warship turned toward some point in space, and ignited its warp engines, flying off into the unknown.

* * *

As they were in warp, Johnny, after making out with Mavis for a few minutes, told Mavis exactly what had happened. Apparently, Johnny and Techno had suspected that Mavis had gotten into some trouble after not returning after a day, so Techno created a small one-man stealth fighter that could go into space. Johnny docked in one of the warships, and had hidden in the ship for a day, where he ate by stealing stuff from the cafeteria, and slept in the engine room. Eventually, he heard about the prophecy from eavesdropping on some crew members, and had made the assumption that Mavis was one in the prophecy. So when Mavis arrived in the police cruiser, Johnny took action, and killed everyone in the ship with his magnetics, a feat which impressed Mavis.

"So...Fubuki's with Kolt?" asked Johnny, sitting down, "I mean...what happens when she wakes up? Her reaction won't exactly be good, will it?"

Mavis was also thinking about that. She sighed, "I really hope Fubuki stays safe right now," she said, "she almost died on multiple occasions. I mean, it's crazy how the world just ended and we're not talking about that…"

A shadow passed over Johnny's face. "Yeah," he muttered, "so...Cedron was the one who ordered the incinerator to be fired?"

"Yeah," said Mavis, taking note of the change in tone of Johnny's voice, "I don't think he was ever planning on letting Earth survive, now that I think about it."

"Nope, he didn't." Johnny bitterly threw an empty bullet case into a trash can on the side, "No Earth, no humans. I am now officially part of an endangered species. Just like you."

Mavis smiled, wrapping Johnny in another hug and kissing him, "Listen," she said, "we'll be fine. We'll find Fubuki, and get Kolt. Then we can figure out what to do with Cedron."

"I thought you killed Cedron." said Johnny, looking up at her, surprised. "Nah," Mavis turned away from him, "he's still alive. I threw that bastard into the sun. Didn't kill him. I still felt his life force even after that."

Johnny slumped back onto his seat, "Well that sucks," he muttered, "Earth is destroyed, and Cedron is still alive. How could things even get any worse than this. Who is that stupid seer, anyways? I feel as if it's all her fault that things are going down like this."

Mavis winced, "The seer...I don't know who she is. If we could find her, we could get alot of useful information. Information that may lead us to defeating Cedron."

Johnny sighed, "Whatever," he said, "right now, we need to focus on staying alive. Techno, which system are we going to right now? Is it a populated one?"

"At the current course we're in, we're going to System A4920," said Techno, "which is an unexplored star system in the Outer Regions of the galaxy. We should be safe there, unless Cedron's fleet decided to pursue us, which I doubt."

"Okay then," said Johnny, "hopefully we don't die." he muttered.

Mavis smiled grudgingly, but now also understood the words of the seer. She had said that Mavis would be defeated in the battle. Cedron was still alive. Earth was gone. Billions of lives were lost. Mavis thought that she didn't care about Earth, but in the end, she still did. It was, most certainly, a defeat.


	85. Beacon

The warship came out of warp a few hours later. When it did, the first thing Mavis noticed was the sun. It was huge. At the current moment, they had warped right in front of the third planet to the sun. The planet was pretty small, and had what appeared to be a massive crater on both poles. Whatever that was caused by, Mavis didn't know, and didn't exactly care either. She was interested in landing and getting to safety.

It was then when Mavis noticed the damage to the warship. Entire chunks of it were already tearing off, the damage from the many artillery strikes it had to endure starting to sink in. The entire bridge shook, as a gun battery completely ripped off the ship and began to fall to the planet. Mavis turned to Techno, "get this ship to the ground," she said urgently, "as fast as possible."

Techno nodded, and began to steer the warship towards the planet. They slowly began to gain acceleration, but Techno managed to keep the entire ship steady. As they began to enter into the atmosphere, flames began to spring up around the ship. Soon enough, they had entered into the planet's atmosphere, falling at extraordinarily fast speeds. Techno leveled the ship right before they crashed.

 _GHRRRRGHZZZZzzz_

The force of impact was enough to knock everyone in the ship apart from Mavis over. Johnny scrambled back up, using his powers to levitate himself off the ground, right as the engines exploded, sending shards of metal flying everywhere. Mavis managed to protect all of them using her telekinesis, but the rest of the warship was completely shredded.

A few seconds after the engines had ignited, Mavis dropped the shield. All around them, the bridge was nothing more than a pile of twisted metal and wires. As Mavis looked behind her, she saw that the warship had actually torn itself in half. The other half was a few miles behind them.

As Mavis stood up, she noticed a few things. First off, there was air. Johnny appeared to be breathing fine, and Techno wasn't freaking out, so that was good. All around them, strange bulbous plants grew from the surface. Weird orb-like plants emanated light, and vines hung down from the trees that were looming over them.

It was beautiful. But this beauty also made a stab of pain go through Mavis. It reminded her of Paradise. A place she had regarded as home for a while. Now gone, because of what Cedron did. It was one of the few things she actually cared about on Earth.

But right now, she had more important things to focus on than her memories. She quickly motioned to Johnny, "Come on!" she said, "we gotta find some shelter in case Cedron finds us again."

Johnny nodded, and the three of them began hiking off through the trees, away from the wreckage of the warship. After they had walked ten miles, Mavis decided to stop and set up camp. By that time, they were deep inside of a thick forest. Massive trees grew all around them, some of them with the diameter of a bus. Mavis created a shelter by telekinetically hollowing out a tree, then making an entrance by punching a hole through the front of it.

Mavis and Johnny ate leaves that they tore from the trees that night. Mavis didn't exactly feel all that hungry, so she let Johnny chew on the leaves that was allotted for her. According to Johnny, they actually tasted kind of like chocolate, except also minty, which wasn't a bad thing.

Johnny watched Mavis, who looked a little sullen and unhappy, and finally said, "You're thinking about Fubuki and Kolt, aren't you?"

Mavis sighed, turning around, "How could I not…" she muttered, "I was the one who accepted Fubuki as my student. If she dies, it's because of me. I don't want to live with that on my conscience. I already have 7 billion lives to deal with."

"Hey," Johnny laid a hand on Mavis's arm, "Earth's destruction was not your fault," he said, looking at Mavis in the eyes, "you were trying to save the planet. You were trying to do the right thing. It was Cedron's fault, don't worry about."

"And Cedron still lives…" murmured Mavis, "we need to get Kolt and Fubuki back. We need to send a signal out that would tell them where we are. Something noticeable. Something that would get their attention immediately."

Johnny shifted uncomfortably, "The last thing we need is for Cedron to find out where we are," he said, "if he really is alive, which I do think he is since you said so, then he will still be hunting us, and trying to find a way to grow more powerful."

"That's the problem," said Mavis impatiently, "we need to get Fubuki and Kolt, so we'll have more support when Cedron does come to me. That way, we'll have more firepower to deal with him, and whatever else he sends for us."

"To be honest…" Johnny shifted a little, "if Cedron engaged us, I think all of us except for you would die instantly. I watched your battle with Cedron from inside the warship. Cedron...he was moving too fast for us to even keep track of. According to Techno, you two went faster than light on multiple occasions. And I can barely accelerate to half the speed of sound with my magnetic powers."

Mavis didn't respond to this immediately. She still hasn't told Johnny of how she didn't think much of Cedron's strength. How, compared to her, he was still weak. But at the same time, from what Johnny was saying, Mavis realized that Cedron was still incredibly powerful, compared to most people.

"Whatever," Mavis plopped back onto the ground. She silently stared at the wall for a few seconds, "I just want Fubuki and Kolt to come back here," she said, "I miss them already. Especially Fubuki." she said hastily, as Johnny raised an eyebrow.

"So tell me," Mavis noticed a change in Johnny's tone, "how's Kolt? What's he like? I mean, you spent a full day with him, so…"

"He's...alright," said Mavis passively, "I mean, his english is fluent, and he's a medical officer, so he was able to take care of Fubuki for a long time. He's the one who's taking care of Fubuki right now, actually…" she then noticed Johnny's stony expression, "oh come on," she complained, "you know I still love you, right?"

Johnny grudgingly smiled a little, "I'm sorry," he murmured, "it's just...I don't want to lose you. Especially after not seeing you for so long. And knowing that you were with Kolt for that time as well…"

Mavis waved her hands, "Believe me, Johnny," she said sternly, "I would never leave you for _anyone_ else. I would die before I did that. And you know that for certain as well. That's why we work so well together."

Johnny grinned, "Yeah, it's really amazing, how from the very beginning, it was just us two," he said, "how we never died...I mean, I kind of died, but I didn't _really_ die, did I? Anyways, I love you too Mavis."

Mavis smiled, kissing Johnny quickly, before rapidly returning to the main subject at hand. "Okay," she murmured, sitting back down, "So, I think we should get a signal up to Fubuki and Kolt, and try to tell them of our location. I can hold out the Nameless Discipline if they decide to attack, which they probably would."

Johnny didn't seem to like the plan, but didn't have a better one. They had no idea where Fubuki or Kolt was. The only way to find them was to get Kolt and Fubuki to come to them, and they couldn't do that unless they sent out some sort of signal.

"Fine then," muttered Johnny, "just make sure we don't die."

* * *

Cedron walked back into the bridge. His face was burnt and scarred, and his armor had to be completely replaced. His legs and arms were also burned up, but were still functional. He had just come out of his flagship's medical bay. When his medical officers told him that he was still too weak, he had killed them.

Cedron was in slight shock of what had happened. The seer had promised him that he would be the one to defeat Mavis. Perhaps he was wrong? Perhaps Mavis wasn't the individual referred to in the prophecy? But it had to be her. He had never seen anyone else with power even coming close to her's.

Even Cedron knew that he was weaker than Mavis at that point. The fact that he had knocked Mavis into Earth, and the fact that Mavis was able to fly back to him in less than fifteen seconds, was a feat that he had never seen done before. Mavis was stronger and faster than him.

Cedron growled. The seer was never wrong, but at the same time, with his current strength, he would never be able to defeat Mavis. Cedron thought. He could become stronger...but it would be risky. Very risky. But it was a risk that he would have to take. The seer had promised him. The seer was always correct.

Cedron turned to B13948, "Set course for Vordania." he said, "tell the rest of the fleet to go back to the Capitol. Only the flagship goes to Vordania.". B13948 responded swiftly, "Sir, if I may ask, why are you going to that planet? It is known for being the home of the ancient Vordanian Warriors."

"It's none of your business." hissed Cedron, turning his sight to the bridge windows, "just set course, and have us get there as soon as possible."

As B13948 was typing in the coordinates, Cedron was thinking. If he would have to defeat Mavis in combat, then he would have to acquire strength beyond anything he's ever imagined before. Vordania was a planet that could give him that. Home to the ancient Vordanian Warriors, it was known for holding magical artifacts that gave its users incredible power. If he needed to go anywhere to gain strength, it was Vordania.

But at the same time, it was risky. Over four thousand people have attempted to go to the planet to gain the power that was hidden in it, and only four of them have ever come out alive. The rest are said to have perished. The four who managed to gain the power were said to be so powerful, that they could even manipulate time itself, but their powers also caused them to become paranoid. They hid themselves in fear of assassination, paranoid that someone powerful enough to defeat them would arise.

Cedron was not such a coward. When he acquired the power the planet offered, he would find and kill Mavis. Only then would the prophecy be complete.

* * *

That night, Mavis and Johnny watched Techno build a signal beacon that, according to him, would be able to alert everyone in the galaxy to their exact location. It was a very risky move, but one that Mavis felt was required.

But there was one problem. "Miss Dracula," said Techno, after a few hours of tinkering with his technokinesis on the signal beacon, "I'm afraid that I do not have the energy required to propel the signal to speeds faster than light, which is what I will have to do in order to use this signal properly."

Mavis looked at Techno, "Crap," she muttered, "so...now what?"

"There is a way," said Techno, "but it requires your help, Miss Dracula. According to my calculations, you should be able to telekinetically force the signal to speeds faster than light, judging from how fast you went in your battle against Cedron."

Mavis rolled her eyes. Of course Techno was doing calculations while she fought Cedron. But she nodded anyways. "Alright." she said dismissively, "so...what am I supposed to do again? Just telekinetically force the signal to go faster and faster?"

"Exactly." said Techno, setting down the signal beacon. It looked like a shield generator from Star Wars, but Mavis didn't comment on that. Techno pushed a few buttons on the side of the beacon, and soon enough, the top of it opened up. Johnny shifted. "There's radio waves coming from there," he said, pointing, "I can feel it."

"Accelerate the radio waves, now." said Techno firmly, "Go!"

Mavis concentrated, pouring telekinetic energy into the beacon, accelerating the radio wave faster and faster, until suddenly-

"What the-" murmured Johnny, scrambling back.

Mavis opened her eyes, to see a solid beam of light shooting upwards from the beacon. "Yes, that's it!" said Techno, "keep it up for another 16.839 seconds."

Mavis closed her eyes again. The beam of light thickened, becoming more solid, until finally, Techno said, "Alright, there we go. You can stop now, Miss Dracula. The beacon has been sent out to the entire galaxy now."

Mavis sat back onto the ground, and the beam of light immediately died out. "Damn," she muttered, "that was tiring. Now we just gotta wait, and hope that doing that wasn't a mistake."


	86. Vordania

Mavis and Johnny were nervously waiting all night. When the sun began rising, they began to grow worried. "What if Kolt and Fubuki didn't receive the transmission?" Mavis finally asked, after another hour of ill-fated waiting.

"They must have." said Techno, but even he was starting to look worried, "remember, this star system is in the outer regions. It would take a while for any ship to warp here, even for the Nameless Discipline. If Kolt received the transmission, which he had to, then he has already warped."

Mavis slowly nodded, watching the skies. For about another hour, they stood there, until suddenly, Johnny spotted something. "Look!" he yelled, pointing. Above them, a dozen warships had just come out of warp right above the planet. Mavis cursed. This certainly wasn't Kolt or Fubuki.

Mavis began to levitate herself a little off the ground, "We'll wait until they're in the atmosphere to attack," she said, "Johnny, your magnetic might become useful in this one, warships are pretty electronic if you ask me."

Johnny grinned. "Alright," he said, "Just tell me when to attack." The two of them stood there, watching the warships slowly descend. Soon enough they were about a mile into the mesosphere. Mavis decided to initiate the attack there.

"NOW!" she yelled. Before Johnny had even risen above the ground, Mavis had flown straight for the warships. Sure enough, they were of the same design as the Nameless Discipline Warship. The enemy cannons fired, and Mavis easily dodged all of the shells. However, before the shells could hit the ground, she telekinetically rerouted them back to the warships, sending massive explosions running along most of them.

Mavis jumped into the bridge of the largest warship, going so fast she phased through the glass of the bridge window. Inside, the officers were panicking. Mavis didn't see Cedron. She frowned. Cedron wasn't here?

She suddenly heard someone yell, "STOP HER!"

Gunshots came at her from all angles. Mavis simply flicked her hands, and everyone in the bridge was killed instantly. Their life forces emptied. The only peson who was left alive was the captain. Mavis held him in a firm grasp.

"Tell me," she said savagely, "where is Cedron? _WHERE IS HE_?"

The captain didn't even bother trying to fight against the hypnosis, "He's...on Vordania…"

Mavis killed the captain. Vordania? That was probably another planet. Suddenly, all around her, Mavis saw other warships randomly exploding, their engines flickering in and out. Johnny seemed to have been successful in screwing around with their electronics.

Out of the 12 warships that were there originally, eight were left, and they were still firing at them steadily. A shell collided directly with the bridge Mavis was end, turning the place she was standing in to a massive fireball. Mavis, however, was unfazed. She vanished, then reappeared on top of the nearest warship, punching it.

The place where she punched immediately exploded, and a shockwave emanated from the punch, sending the other warships flying away. It was then when Mavis sensed it. Danger.

Mavis vanished, then reappeared right above the area she was just in, right as a shell teleported in front of where she just was. Mavis stared. Teleporting shells? That was odd. Without hesitation, Mavis flew at the warship which fired these shells, dodging another two teleporting shells. Landing on the front of the ship, Mavis flew around, destroying each battery until all of the gun turrets were destroyed. She then killed everyone on board the bridge.

It was then when Mavis noticed a few things. The first thing she noticed was Johnny yelling, as a shell exploded near him, sending him spiralling back to the planet. The second thing she noticed was a tiny police cruiser flying down towards the planet, separate from the warships. The next thing she noticed was the warships firing on that police cruiser.

That wasn't good. Mavis stopped the shells from colliding with the cruiser telekinetically, then formed a massive telekinetic barrier between the cruiser and the warships. Mavis's heart was pounding. Johnny was still alive, but he _was_ hit by a shell. And he had made a full collision with the ground. She had to hold off the warships.

Mavis turned around, and flew directly at the nearest warship, bringing all of her strength into one savage, massive punch. The warship exploded, but something else happened. In destroying the warship, there was a second, even larger explosion. Mavis was unprepared for it, and was knocked back to the ground by it, creating a crater where she landed.

Mavis scrambled back up, but by that time, the warships had already had enough of them. They were turning away and warping out, some of them heavily damaged. After the last one warped away, Mavis turned, and saw Johnny, unconscious on the ground. Around him, the leaves and rocks had formed a circle around him. Mavis was impressed. Johnny's magnetism was enough to manipulate even non-magnetic objects.

Mavis grabbed Johnny, slinging him over her back, and ran over to the police cruiser, which had landed near the hollow tree they were camping in last night. Mavis, after setting down Johnny in a clump of leaves she telekinetically formed, ran over to the police cruiser, where Techno was trying to open the door.

"The door's been melted shut." said Techno, "the fireball of the artillery shells appeared to have literally welded it like that. We need some brute force in order to break it down, and I don't have that."

"I got it." said Mavis. She grabbed the door handle and tore the door right off its hinges. Tossing it aside, Mavis looked inside, where she saw Kolt and Fubuki. Fubuki was actually conscious, but her eyes seemed a little dim for what Mavis was used to. As soon as they made eye contact, however, Fubuki's eyes began to glow hypergreen.

"Mavis!" Fubuki and Mavis embraced temporarily. After making sure Fubuki was alright, Mavis turned to Kolt, shaking his hand, "Thanks for the help," she said sincerely, "Fubuki wouldn't be here without you.". Kolt rolled his eyes, "It was fine, honestly." he said.

After the four of them got settled down inside the hollow tree, Mavis setting Johnny down next to her, they all exchanged their stories. Mavis explained how she had retreated to this planet with Johnny and Techno, and about how they had the idea of sending out a signal beacon to inform Fubuki and Kolt of their location, which, in the end, did work.

Kolt told them about how he had retreated to an asteroid field, where he nursed Fubuki back to health. Fubuki had apparently thought that she was being taken hostage at first, but eventually realized that Kolt was a friendly. They worked together, looking for any signs of Mavis and Johnny, before they received the signal.

"So…." Kolt leaned back a little, "we need to get moving, before the Nameless Discipline find us again. You might've driven them back a little, but they'll return very soon, with more forces and more firepower.". Mavis didn't want to move, but knew that she had to.

Mavis nodded, "Alright." she said, "so...come on, let's get moving then. Techno, you can pilot the ship better than all of us combined, so you should probably go in first…". The four of them, including Techno, made their way onto the police cruiser, Techno activating the engines. Soon enough, they were flying through the atmosphere, back into space.

While they were flying, Johnny woke up, rubbing his head. As soon as he saw Kolt and Fubuki, he, surprisingly, wasn't panicked. He got up, "Fubuki!" he said, "nice to see you. And you must be Kolt." Kolt nodded, smiling a little. This was probably the weirdest group he's ever been in. A vampire, an alien from another dimension, a human, an alien from this dimension, and an android.

After filling in Johnny on what happened, Mavis decided to tell the group what she had heard about Vordania, and how Cedron was visiting it. As soon as she mentioned Vordania, Mavis noticed Kolt's face turn pale. "What is it?" she asked Kolt.

"If Cedron is going to Vordania...that is not good…" murmured Kolt, "he's trying to unlock the planet's power in order to defeat you. That means that he knows that he can't defeat you with his current strength, so he decided to go to that planet."

"But what's so special about Vordania?" asked Johnny, tilting his head a little, "is it supposed to have some sort of magical thing that allows its users to gain immeasurable power? Or what? I mean, we've dealt with those before…"

"No, this is beyond anything you can imagine," Kolt grew a little more pale, "those who go to that planet to seek power never return. Over four thousand people have attempted to go into that planet to gain the power that is locked within it, and only four have ever come out. They gained immeasurable power, but also hid themselves away in order to protect their own power."

"So...if Cedron gains that type of power…" murmured Fubuki, "Then he would be able to defeat Mavis? How powerful have you become in the past few days?" she asked Mavis.

Mavis shrugged, "Quite a bit," she said to Fubuki, "but even with the power of the planet within him, I don't think Cedron can beat me. He's strong, but isn't as strong as me yet. And anyways, it's not guaranteed that Cedron will even return from the planet. According to what Kolt just said, most people die on it."

"Yes," said Kolt, "but if he does get through, we're all doomed. It's said that those with the power of Vordania within them can manipulate the fabric of space-time. They can do incredible things. Even you wouldn't be able to keep up with it, Mavis."

Mavis didn't say anything. "If it's really that important for Cedron to gain that type of power…" she murmured, "then there's only one way to stop him. I need to gain that power first. Techno, set course for Vordania."

"NO!" yelled Kolt, "Mavis, you musn't go there! The power within Vordania corrupts. Those who've gained such power only grow paranoid. They kill their friends and family in order to secure their power. You wouldn't be the same if you went there."

"I'm already powerful enough without Vordania," said Mavis dismissively, "if I got there, I doubt it'll make a difference. Do you have a better plan to stop Cedron? He's probably already on that planet. Even though I doubt that the power of Vordania can defeat me, according to what you've said, it can, so to be safe, I think it's a better idea to go to Vordania and take the power before Cedron does.

Kolt seemed to want to talk back, but Johnny put a hand on Mavis's shoulder, "Mavis…" he murmured, "As much as I hate to say this, I think you should go."

"Same." Fubuki nodded as well, "Mavis is the strongest person I have ever seen," she said, "I doubt that some magical planet can defeat her. She'll be able to gain the power, and when she does, she won't be corrupted by it.

Kolt finally sighed. "Fine." he muttered, but he still looked worried.

Mavis turned to Techno, "Warp to Vordania. Maximum speed. Cedron cannot be allowed to get his hands on the power of the planet. I'll kill him before he does."

* * *

Cedron docked his one-man fighter on the surface of Vordania. All around him was red sand and rocky cliff sides. The wind caused massive red dust storms to bellow over him, tinging his vision with orange.

Around him, he heard voices.

 _Mmmmm yes. This one is powerful. Perhaps he will survive…_

 _That is good._

 _Will he pass the test? I certainly hope he does...this is good_

 _That is good. So much determination. So much willpower_

 _But is it enough…_

Cedron began to walk forward. The voices slowly faded out behind him. In front of him was a crumbling temple, made of a weird reddish-brown brick. There, he began to hear more voices.

 _He wants power so badly….perhaps we can grant him his wish, and let him suffer_

 _That is good_

Cedron shook his head. He had to concentrate. These voices were trying to deter him from gaining what he wanted the most. Power. Power to defeat Mavis Dracula. As Cedron entered the temple, he could only think of what this planet had in store for him, and what he would have to go through in order to get the power.


	87. Conquer the Flagship

The police cruiser came out of warp a few hours later, right in the middle of an asteroid field. Techno easily maneuvered through the asteroids, his robotic reflexes taking over the ship and keeping it safe. Mavis immediately spotted Vordania, a few hundred miles ahead of them, through some asteroids. Guarding it, however, was none other than the largest warship Mavis had ever seen.

"What the…" murmured Mavis, staring at the monstrosity of a warship. It was at least 1,200 km across, with massive guns covering either side of it. Apart from being huge and boasting such guns, it also had one massive gun that dwarved the rest. Mavis immediately recognized the warship as the same one that blew up Earth.

And even worse, the warship seemed to have noticed them. It's guns were swiveling in their direction. Mavis was the only one who could see this, since she was using her extrasensory perception. Even Techno couldn't make any observations from their current distance.

Mavis ran over to the control panel, grabbing the throttle and pushing a hard left, causing the entire police cruiser to bank to the left. Right as she did that, the place they were just in exploded, sending fragments of asteroid and ice flying everywhere. Kolt yelled, causing Fubuki to jump behind Mavis. Nobody but Mavis had seen the shells coming.

The police cruiser flew off, flying through the asteroid field with surprising smoothness. Mavis's reaction time and reflexes was the only thing keeping them alive. The warship, however, kept track of them, firing more and more shells. All around them, asteroids exploded.

Mavis decided to screw it, flying directly out of the asteroid field, which was their only cover, and going on the offensive, transferring all power to engines. Behind her, she heard Kolt mutter, "Yeah, we're dead.". Mavis flew straight at the enemy warship, dodging the shells that were being fired at her and going straight for where the hangars should've been.

As Mavis banked a hard right to see the hangars, she noticed that they were closed. Massive doors had closed down on the hangars right in time, in anticipation of a boarding attempt. Mavis growled. She clenched her fists, and the doors to the hangar bays imploded, sending a shockwave rippling through the ship.

The police cruiser flew into the hangars, landing quickly. The doors opened, and Fubuki and Johnny ran out, hands blazing. Alien soldiers ran into the room, firing energy guns that launched beams of light that flew across the room.

 _Attention: Intruders on deck 17_

Well, now they had an entire ship's crew to kill. Shouldn't be too hard. Mavis snapped her fingers, and every alien in the hangar bay was instantly killed. Fubuki stared at her, "How-"

"Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt, you two capture the bridge." said Mavis, "Techno, keep watch over the cruiser. We might need it any time soon. I'll head to the planet's surface. After you guys capture the ship, wait for a signal from me."

"What?" Johnny's face immediately became worried, "Mavis, that's too dangerous. You can't go down onto that planet alone, you might die, or get lost, or-"

"I'll be fine," insisted Mavis, "it's you guys who need to concentrate on staying alive. Once you guys clear out the ship, have the warp drive ready. I'll send out an all-clear signal from the planet once I'm done with whatever I need to do down there. It should be very noticeable, like a giant dust cloud or something. Once you see that, ignite the warp engines. I'll be able to get back onto the ship in time."

Neither Johnny or Fubuki liked the idea. It involved way too many risk factors, and if Mavis died, there was no way of telling. But Mavis looked more confident than she ever had looked. "Well…" Johnny sighed, "I _really_ hate your ideas, Mavis….but go for it."

"What, are you joking?" Kolt asked, "Mavis, if you go down there, you _will die_. We have to make a plan, and stick to it! Going in there without any course of action is absolute suicide!"

"It won't be any different if I go to the planet now or later," said Mavis, "At least this way, we can get two things done at once. I'll be fine, believe me. I haven't met a force more powerful than me since Tiberius."

Right as she said this, an alien lobbed a grenade at them from a doorway on the other end of the hangar. Fubuki telekinetically stopped it and threw it back at the alien, "Well…" Fubuki looked like she was struggling with her words, "I know nothing I say will change your mind….so good luck."

"Thanks," said Mavis, "you guys go and take over the ship. Go!"

As Fubuki and Kolt ran off to engage the enemy aliens, Johnny turned to Mavis. He sighed, "You better stay alive, Mavey.". Mavis smiled. She quickly kissed Johnny, "I will," she promised, "I'll be back before you know it. Now go! Fubuki and Kolt need you!"

Johnny nodded, turning his back to Mavis, and jumping back to the battle that was now raging through the hallways of the ship. When Johnny turned back again, Mavis had vanished, a crater where she just was. He smiled. His wife was pretty awesome, no denying that.

Johnny joined up with Fubuki and Kolt, who were forcing their way down a hallway that led to the bridge. In front of them, dozens of aliens clad in thick futuristic-looking armor fired heavy energy machine guns at them. Fubuki's telekinesis had grown much stronger, and her reaction time was now fast enough for her to dodge bullets entirely. Next to her, Kolt was firing a blaster rifle that he had grabbed from the ground, providing cover fire for Fubuki. Johnny ran down the hallway, bringing his hands out in front of him and releasing an electrical wave that knocked back most of the aliens.

However, these aliens appeared to have tougher armor than humans. They quickly got back up, resuming their fire on Fubuki and Johnny and Kolt. Johnny forced himself behind a barrier, and Fubuki blocked the energy bolts with telekinesis. Kolt was also pinned behind a wall. He gritted his teeth, throwing a grenade at the enemy lines. There was an explosion, but in the end, the aliens still resumed their fire.

Kolt yelled over the heavy fire, "These guys aren't budging!" he yelled, "we need something to drive them back quickly! Fubuki, you got anything?"

Fubuki growled. Her eyes glowed as she raised her hands. All around her, random stuff from the ground, such as guns, empty bullet casings, armor, rocks, even particles of dust, were raised a few feet above the ground. The began to spin extraordinarily quickly. So quickly that they soon became invisible.

The enemy soldiers seemed to notice that something was going on. Some of them began retreating, right as Fubuki yelled, launching hundreds of tiny projectiles at the enemy lines at Mach 56,000, killing most of them at once. The only ones who survived were the ones who had jumped behind cover in time.

"How did you learn how to do that?" asked Johnny in disbelief, "I've only seen Mavis do something like that, a few months ago.". He magnetically grabbed a gun from the ground and also began firing.

Fubuki grinned, her eyes dimming a little, "Mavis taught me how to do it," she said proudly, "one of the little tricks she decided to teach me one day. But it's still weak, compared to what she can do. But it's all worth it in the long run."

On the other end of the hallway, more soldiers ran through. This time, some of them were wearing officer's uniforms rather than standard alien armor. Johnny grinned. This meant that they were out of soldiers, and were now sending officers to fight on deck.

Fubuki shoved Johnny out of the way, right as one of the soldiers fired a rocket launcher which narrowly missed him. It flew down the hallway and exploded in the hangar. Johnny quickly scrambled up, "Thanks!" he yelled, turning back to the soldiers.

Fubuki nodded, charging down the hallway, using telekinesis to boost her speed to 23% the speed of light, reappearing right in front of the enemy lines. There was an outburst of yelling and gunshots, and when Johnny peeked out behind the wall he was taking cover in, he saw that all the soldiers had been killed by Fubuki.

"Nice!" Johnny sprinted down the hallway, Kolt scrambling behind him, gripping the same rifle he had picked up from the ground. When they caught up to Fubuki, she was in the middle of trying to break open the door. As Johnny watched, she noticed that Fubuki was putting all her effort into prying open the door telekinetically, but nothing happened.

Johnny stepped forward, "I got this." he said confidently. He put his hands on the door, and closed his eyes. His magnetism kicked in, sending electricity coursing through the door, until finally, it hissed open, some steam coming through. On the other end, Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt saw that the entire bridge was empty.

"That isn't right…" Kolt looked around, "there should be someone controlling the ship at least...someone who's hiding.". It was then when Kolt was suddenly grabbed and thrown against the nearest wall. "Kolt!" yelled Fubuki. She ran forward, turning him over and checking his pulse. It was still there, luckily.

"How touching…."

Fubuki and Johnny turned around right as they saw dozens of tentacles slowly crawl over the edge of the bridge platform. In front of them, was the strangest alien they've ever seen. It was tall, at least 14 feet tall, and had dozens of legs that it crawled on. It's eyes were two blotches of solid blue, which glowed slightly.

Fubuki felt the air pressure change immediately when she saw him. She cursed. Whoever this alien was, it appeared that he also had telekinesis. She backed up slightly, raising her hands in a defensive position. "Who the hell are you?" she asked.

The alien turned towards her. "My name is Vathardoz," he said. His voice was silky and smooth, but also dangerous and deadly, as if he was a constantly analyzing how to kill someone, "I am this ship's captain, and you appeared to have slain my crew."

Johnny stepped forward, "Listen, alien," he said, slightly angrily, "Surrender now, or we'll be forced to kill you. Your crew was easy. And I doubt you'll be any harder to defeat. You look like an overinflated spider."

Vathardoz hissed at him, "Very well then…" he said, "if fighting is what you want…."

Vathardoz vanished, then reappeared right behind Johnny, smashing him against the nearest wall. He scuttled straight for Fubuki next, who had the reflexes to dodge him just in time. Vathardoz _was_ fast. He certainly wasn't weak.

Fubuki used telekinesis to fly in the air, throwing random objects at Vathardoz, who dodged them just as easily. "You may think that you're stronger," hissed Vathardoz, "but in the end, speed is what truly matters. It is what makes me a great warrior."

Fubuki growled, "If I can't hit you," she hissed, "Then I'll just destroy the entire area.". With that, Fubuki released a massive wave of fire in all directions, purposely rerouting the flames so they wouldn't hit Kolt or Johnny. She held the fire for a full ten seconds before stopping.

At first, Fubuki thought that she had defeated Vathardoz, but she quickly heard a scuttling noise behind her, and ducked right as a scythe-like claw flew out from behind her. She quickly dodged the next three attacks, and blasted Vathardoz back with her telekinesis.

"Ugh…" Vathardoz spat to the ground, "you have faster reaction times than most of my adversaries, I will admit.". He charged again, but this time, something forced him out of his superspeed. His claw, which was apparently made of metal, was literally ripped off of his body. Vathardoz screamed with pain, limping back, a bloody hole where his claw just was.

On the other end of the bridge, Johnny was holding his claw. He threw it aside. "You know," he said, "it's really nice when your target's arm is made out of metal, and you happen to also be magnetic."

Vathardoz was about to do something, when Johnny lashed out, shooting yellow electricity from his hands to Vathardoz, electrocuting him. Vathardoz roared with pain, thrashing around, but the pain from his lost arm didn't allow him to fight back. He succumbed to either the electricity, or the blood loss from his arm.

There was a moment of silence, before Fubuki ran over to Kolt. She quickly brought him over to a seat on the side of the bridge, and set him down gently. She then turned to Johnny, "Most of the controls are probably fried from my fire, but try working with them anyways."

Johnny nodded, and ran over to the controls, trying to work the many buttons and levers that were scattered across the panel. "Um...you seemed to have broken the majority of them...but the warp still works." he said optimistically, "We can steer the ship and warp, but we can't control the weapons or divert power anymore."

"I see." Fubuki walked over, also looking over the controls. After setting coordinates to a remote star system far away, she turned back to Johnny, "Guard the bridge," she said urgently, "there are probably still crew members that are alive out there. If you see any, kill them."

Johnny nodded, "Alright." he said, "and what of Kolt?"

"He'll be fine. I'll telekinetically heal him." said Fubuki dismissively, "go, guard the bridge. Let's hope Mavis can make it back…"


	88. Not even a Challenge

Mavis landed on the surface of the planet, softly dropping herself onto the red sand underneath her. Vordania was a pretty gloomy-looking planet, to be quite honest. For miles all around her, Mavis saw nothing but old stone ruins and red sand. The remains of trees were dotted here and there, but apart from that, it appeared that there was no life on the surface.

Mavis began to walk around slowly. She should've thought this through more carefully before she left the warship. She had no idea on how to gain the power of Vordania. But apparently, she didn't need to, because at that very moment, she began to hear voices, whispering around her. She whipped her head around, but saw nothing.

What is this? Another person? She is strong….perhaps she is worthy of the gift….no, we musn't take haste...that is good...She is strong….no, she is a threat. One man has already came down this path, she musn't interfere…there is only one choice we are left with….

In front of Mavis, a massive colossus suddenly rose out of the sand in front of her. It stood there, forty feet tall, with two, dark green glowing spots as eyes. It was made out of a weird black stone, that had green lines etched onto it. The colossus roared, smashing the area where Mavis just was, but Mavis was too fast. She vanished, and reappeared back on top of it, grabbing the colossus by the face and throwing him into orbit like a football.

This is a strong one...yes, stronger than all we have seen...no, she is a threat….this is good….we musn't interfere with the path of the other one...why not stop try stopping her again...she is too powerful...too risky to let her live...must kill…

The voices were raspy and withered, as if being spoken through by a bunch of witches from shakespeare. Mavis didn't like them. But at the same time, something told her that they weren't physically there. If they were, then Mavis would be able to sense their life force.

Still, Mavis didn't like them. She yelled, sending out a telekinetic shockwave that send a sandstorm billowing out in all directions from her. A nearby dead tree was flattened to the ground, and much of the sand around her was turned into melted glass.

This one has a confident mind...this one is not willing to obey...she is strong, we may be able to use her...must kill….that is good...she is unique, powerful, but not power hungry….she does not seek power. That makes her dangerous...dangerous to us...must kill…

Mavis decided instead to ignore the voices, marching through the sand towards the ruins in front of her. The ruins were made of what appeared to be black stone, and were the remains of what seemed to be a temple. Mavis jumped down, walking into the temple, through the entrance.

Inside, most of the temple was actually well-preserved. The walls had glowing green etchings that criss crossed through the sides. In the center, a rectangular box of solid white stone was embedded into the ground. Mavis walked around it, observing the area around her. It was then when she heard it. A hissing, slithering noise. Coming from right above her.

Mavis jumped out of the way right as something fell and smashed the area she was just in. In front of her, the weirdest thing she's ever seen floated in front of her. It had no arms, just a single body that floated above the ground. It's tail crackled with electricity, and had spikes embedded into it.

"You dare!" the monster hissed at her. It charged straight at Mavis, at a surprisingly fast pace. It was even faster than Cedron. But not fast enough. Mavis dodged the monster's attack, also vanishing and reappearing hanging down from the ceiling. She dropped down, telekinetically blasting the entire temple and charging at the monster.

The monster didn't even try to run. It smashed the ground with its tail, causing a wave of electricity to shoot out in all directions. Mavis didn't even feel the electricity. She ran right through it, bringing her fist down on the monster's face-

"NO!" the monster suddenly released a second image of itself. It was a clone of the monster, and charged right at Mavis, catching her off guard. The real monster then slid away, vanishing and reappearing on the other end of the temple. Mavis growled. So this monster had clones?

The clone swung down at Mavis with its tail, but Mavis was too fast. She slid out of the way, reappearing over the clone and punching down on its face, completely disintegrating it to dust. She was about to turn to the real monster, when she noticed with her extrasensory perception that he wasn't there anymore.

"Behind you!" The monster reappeared behind Mavis, bringing his tail down on her. Mavis ducked, and blasted the monster back with telekinesis, making some distance between the monster and herself. She watched the monster closely. "You're fast." she commented, "probably the fastest I've faced."

The monster floated in front of her. "You...are also fast," hissed the monster, "but no matter...in the end, I am the supreme speed of the universe. Nobody beats my speed. It was made like that. I am the epitome of natural law when it comes to speed."

"Huh. Funny." Mavis vanished, and instantly, the monster also vanished. The two of them fought in superspeed, being nothing more than blurs and flashes of light to any ordinary viewer. Finally, Mavis got tired of fighting the monster. He was fast, and whenever Mavis got close to killing him, he would just send out a clone.

Mavis concentrated, and when the monster came at her the next time, she began to move back and forth at a constantly accelerating pace. At first, nothing happened, but as the monster grew closer, he looked up and saw a few hundred Mavises standing in front of him.

The monster didn't have any chance to even react. In that split-picosecond of time, he hesitated in his speed. And Mavis took advantage of that, throwing the monster across the room, and then jumping on top of him, punching him once in the face.

The monster was dead.

Immediately, Mavis began to hear the voices again, which really annoyed her since the voices were always talking about how she should die. But this time, they sounded more surprised then bloodthirsty.

She killed Etharzaganda...that is good….perhaps she deserves a chance...no, too risky...the other is already in process….we must kill….perhaps we should personally face….no….too much effort….she is so powerful….not powerful enough...let her through….

In front of Mavis, the giant block of white stone suddenly opened up, sliding open to reveal a stairway that led down. Mavis quickly walked down the stairs, her extrasensory perception kicking in and allowing her to see in the dark.

As Mavis walked down the stairwell, she noticed that the walls were filled with etchings. Etchings that showed scenes of warfare. Alot of warfare. So this was what the Vordanians were like. They fought all day, and didn't have any time to try for peace.

The stairwell kept going down….going down...going down….how long has it been? Mavis kept walking. After about twenty minutes of walking, the stairwell finally opened up into a separate room. The room was full of tables and scrolls. In the corner, Mavis saw a pile of bones. That couldn't be good.

In the corner, sitting behind a desk, was none other than a human-like ghost. It was wearing a long red robe, that reached its feet, and as Mavis watched, its image flickered, temporarily vanishing for a second. He was a ghost. Mavis slowly walked up to him, his arms raised in case of an attack.

Without looking up, the ghost took out a piece of paper, and put it on a table in the front of the room. He then walked back to his desk, and sat down behind it. "Welcome, Mavis Dracula," the ghost said. His voice was deep, but also sharp. Mavis wasn't going to ask how he knew her name, "please sit down at the table where the paper is currently at, and complete the test. Once you complete the test, you may continue on from this room."

Mavis slowly cross the room, and sat down at the table. The paper in front of her was blank. "It's blank." she commented lamely. The ghost waved his hands, "now it isn't." he said. Mavis looked back down, and saw that her paper now had problems on it. In total, four questions. Mavis looked at the problems, and nearly fainted.

Prove that the Jacobson's Conjecture is true for all values of theta and pi, then prove that the fourth integration value is equal to three times the derivative of Euler's Identity to the fourth power.

Mavis had literally no idea what this problem meant. She looked at the next problem, hoping for maybe a better one, but was disappointed yet again.

Detail the process of solidifying light photons, given an electromagnetic accelerator, a quantum gearbox, and without using sigma or integrals. Prove that your method is the easiest way.

Mavis gave up right there. "Uh...what if I can't answer the problems?" she asked the ghost. THe ghost yawned, "then you will die, like 3,996 people before you. There is no point in giving up. At least give it a try, so I can feel pity for you before killing you."

Mavis ignored him. She crossed the room, where there was another door. As soon as she got near it, however, the ghost vanished, and reappeared in front of her, "You may not exit." he said sternly, his voice deviating from his usual monotone self.

"I don't care," said Mavis, forcing her way forward, "you're just a ghost. You can't do anything anyways.". This comment only angered the ghost, whose face turned pale immediately, "I am not a ghost!" he said angrily, "I am a Jial!"

Whatever a Jial was, Mavis didn't bother to find out. She blasted the Jial back with telekinesis, running straight for the door, and bringing his fist down on it, but was blocked by the Jial, who threw himself in front of the door, taking the hit.

Immediately, he exploded, as the force of the punch knocked him back. However, as Mavis turned back to him again, she saw that the Jial was reforming. He flickered, bits of him reappearing, until finally, he was back into his undamaged form.

The Jial, however, still looked confused. "Impossible," he growled, "how did you hit me? I am not even made of solid material…" Mavis didn't bother to hear him rant anymore. She punched Jial again, this time putting a little more effort into it. This time, the Jial exploded into several fragments of light and mist, but quickly began reforming again…

"Impudence…" he turned to Mavis, "you have forfeited your only chance to pass the test. Prepare to die, Mavis Dracula."

Mavis's mind ran. She couldn't defeat the Jial...but he was made of light...light was made of photons….Mavis concentrated, her telekinesis kicking in. On the other end of the room, the Jial slowly begun to feel slight discomfort, which quickly became extreme discomfort, as his body was slowly ripped apart, photon by photon, by Mavis's telekinesis.

"What is this?" he hissed, trying to take a step forward. His image completely flickered, as he began to slowly melt away. Mavis clenched her fists, "You think I can't kill you because I can't touch you?" she asked, "well, you're wrong."

The Jial roared, and tried to attack Mavis. A beam of light shot out of his hand. Mavis dodged it, ducking right in time, right as three more beams of light went flying at her. "You may be able to kill me slowly," said the Jial, "but if I kill you before you kill me, then it'll be a win-win for me."

Mavis growled. The Jial had a point. But she wasn't going to let that stop her from killing him. This guy's killed thousands of people on his own. He was too dangerous to be kept alive. The Jial was now flickering really badly, sometimes going completely invisible as his body was slowly torn apart.

Mavis growled. She yelled, dropping her defense and completely focusing on destroying her opponent. The Jial screamed, as he felt Mavis's telekinesis tear billions of protons out of his body at a time. A few seconds later, he was gone.

Mavis stood up, brushing dust from her clothes. She went over to the door, and punched it open. Behind it was a hallway, made of solid black stone, and lit up with an eerie green glow. Mavis slowly began to make her way through it, preparing herself for whatever might come next.

So far, nothing has posed a serious challenge for her. Mavis just needed to make sure to stay alive if anything did.


	89. We Meet Again

Mavis walked briskly through the narrow stone corridor that was behind the door. By now, the voices were beginning to really annoy her. They were growing restless, sounding a little hysterical, and had a narrow edge to their voices that Mavis did not like.

 _Zeragradz is dead….she is strong….how strong….she does not seek power….that is good….don't become too strong, Mavis Dracula….she must not go through the next room...we must stop her….yes….that is good…_

Mavis's walk slowly broke into a run, as she ran from the voices. She passed through two turns, and was soon face to face with a stone door. She quickly opened it, walking in briskly. On the other end, she saw….something that she was definitely not used to.

It was her parents, sitting by an open table. All around them, her friends and extended family were branched out. And, even better, were the people who had died after trying to help her. Gerschiv, James, even G4 and Fubuki were sitting by the table. Techno was serving food, and as Mavis approached the table, she heard laughter….

Mavis's eyes softened. It had been too long since she saw her own parents. It's been too long since she's known true happiness. "Hey, look who it is!" Mavis turned around right as Dracula stood up, walking over and giving her a hug, "Mavey, we've been waiting for you." he said with a grin.

Mavis smiled, burying his head into her dad's shoulder. But as soon as she did this, she immediately remembered where she was. Johnny. Fubuki. Her job. Cedron. Mavis broke away from the hug. "No." she said, "you aren't real."

"Mavis, we are real…" said Dracula, and this time, Mavis saw sincerity in his words, "what do you mean? This is the hotel. Your home, remember? Here, have some scream cheese…"

Mavis looked around. This time, she recognized the room. The black stone walls melted away into the warm walls of the hotel. The dull ceiling became decorated with elaborate chandeliers and candles, and the entire area was lit up with a warm yellow glow.

It was all fake.

Mavis flicked her fingers, and immediately, she had Dracula in her grasp. She was, by now, hundreds of times stronger than him. She quickly snapped her own father's neck, not wanting him to say anything. Before anyone else could do anything, she had jumped up, releasing a wave of telekinetic energy into the ground, blasting everyone else in the room back.

Everyone in the room was yelling, scrambling over each other. Mavis killed them all, starting with Murray, Griffin, then moving on to Gerschiv, and James. Killing each and every one of them. She had to. They were illusions, meant to slow her down. But then she faced Johnny.

"Mavis, what're you doing?" he yelled, "why did you do that? We just got back from the war! Is this what you really want?"

Mavis grabbed him telekinetically, choking him. Johnny was held there, levitating a few feet off the ground. "Mavis…." Johnny tried to get the words out, "I...don't...love you anymore…"

Mavis screamed, and everything in the room shattered to trillions of fragments of light. The walls became black and cold again. The light receded, replaced by the gloomy mood of the room she was originally in. The chandeliers and candles were replaced by a musty ceiling.

Mavis stood there, clutching herself, breathing hard. Whatever that was, it took a hard toll on her. It was just an illusion. She couldn't let such things distract her. But still...she killed Johnny...on purpose….

 _She is strong...her willpower is solid….we must eliminate her….no, she can be used...used...for what...I will face her alone...no...she is not that powerful...she is strong...that is good...we will leave her...no...too dangerous...the other one is nearly complete…_

The other one was nearly complete. That couldn't be good. That meant that Cedron was nearly there. Too bad he couldn't die in the process, as Mavis was hoping for. He seemed to be quite close to the power of Vordania. That meant that Mavis had to hurry.

Scrambling back up, and trying to clear her mind of her virtual killing of Johnny, Mavis scrambled down the hallway, using telekinesis to steady herself in the air. As she whizzed down through the other end of the room, she made a turn, right into a large circular crypt-like area.

Mavis immediately recognized it as a crypt, because there was one right outside the hotel, before it was destroyed by the Supreme Leader. The walls were covered with mold and grime. The ground was dirty, and a horrible, rotting smell wafted from the ceiling. In the center, was a tiny pond. It was smooth and glassy, but also solid black. Something about it sent chills up Mavis's spine.

As she drew near the pond, she began to hear voices, different from the ones she heard before, coming from the water. The voice actually sounded kind of human…

 _Submerge….Submerge yourself….Mavis Dracula…_

Mavis stared. The last thing she wanted to do was submerge herself in this nasty water. She could barely even see through the top five inches of it, even with her extrasensory perception, and that meant that the water was very, very dark.

But it was what she had to do. Mavis had no choice in this matter. She had to submerge herself. As Mavis looked around, she saw no door or exit from the crypt. Behind her, the place where she had just come from had vanished, replaced by yet another smooth wall of stone.

Mavis looked back to the glassy water. She took a deep breath, and jumped in.

At first, she couldn't see anything in the black water. It was cold, far colder than anything normal, but Mavis wasn't exactly affected by it. She slowly sank, deeper….deeper….and deeper. Above her, the surface of the water quickly vanished, and her vision went completely black.

Mavis's first instinct was panic. She was sinking, and she didn't know how far down she would go. Beneath her, all Mavis could see were her feet. Beneath that, all she saw was darkness. Mavis concentrated, her eyes glowing underwater. Her extrasensory perception slowly began to kick in. The water resisted it, but eventually, she pushed through it.

Mavis looked around, and saw everything clearly. She was in a massive, open underwater cavern. Beneath her, dark stone formations created patterns on the ground. It appeared as if Mavis had floated down some tunnel, that had opened up into this cavern.

Mavis looked around. She immediately spotted what looked like an exit from the underwater cavern. There was an opening in the side of the cavern, and the water wasn't flowing through the opening, as if something was preventing it from flowing out.

Angling her body in the right way, Mavis quickly swam over to the exit, but before she could do that, Mavis heard something coming at her in the water. Her senses reacted immediately, making her force herself out of the way right as a mass of scales and claws rushed right past her.

Mavis turned around in the water, her extrasensory perception the only thing allowing her to see the monster that had just attacked him. It was a massive, gargantuan fish-like thing. The bottom half of the monster was a mass of scales and reddish-white flesh. Its tail glowed slightly blue, and its face had four jaws, each one with razor sharp teeth lining it.

Mavis faced it, her hands glowing in the water. As the monster came around for another attack, Mavis blasted a jet of water forward, knocking the entire monster to the side, and deterring it from its initial attack. But it came around again, this time using its tail to attack Mavis.

Mavis turned to mist, flying more quickly through the water, and rematerialized right above the monster. She brought her fist down on the monster's body, creating a blast so powerful, it decreased the water level by fifteen inches through vaporization.

The monster thrashed in the water, but somehow managed to survive the hit. It roared, firing a beam of purple light through the water. The beam hit Mavis directly, knocking her back, smashing her against the wall. Mavis didn't hesitate to get back up, vanishing right as the place she was blasted against was pulverized by the monster's tail.

Mavis growled. The monster's scales were too tough. They were legitimately strong. Mavis thought. What could she do?

As the monster charged again, Mavis decided to screw it. She turned to mist, flying directly into the monster's mouth, flying through its massive throat, into its stomach. There, the stench was so bad, it caused Mavis to gag instantly. She punched the side of the stomach, ripping through the stomach, and blowing straight through the scales, and was instantly sucked back into the cavern of water.

Mavis turned back, facing the monster that was now thrashing in the water, slowly dying. The wound on its stomach was bleeding a dark-green blood into the water, staining it even darker than what it currently was.

Mavis swam over, passing the dying monster's body, and swimming over to the exit and passing through it. She swam through the exit, dropping back down onto dry land. Behind her, the water was being held back by some invisible force.

Mavis's extrasensory perception immediately shut off. Her vision became normal again. Around her, she saw round walls, and in the center, was a tomb. Mavis briskly walked over, her hands raised and glowing in case of attack. As soon as she came within viewing distance of the tomb, her eyes read the inscriptions.

Tomb of Anatesia

Mavis approached it slowly. Whoever Anatesia was, it had to have some significance, since it just happened to be located in the path that people took when looking for the power of Vordania. When Mavis drew near it, there was a crackling noise, as the tomb suddenly slid open. This time, Mavis could tell it was a ghost. It smelled of death. Just like how she could sense life, Mavis could also sense death. And this thing was reeking of it.

The ghost straightened itself. It was made mostly of bluish-white light, and had flames that randomly crackled around its body. It was wearing a mask, and had a set of armor on. How the armor was being supported by absolutely nothing, Mavis didn't know.

"My name is Anatesia," the ghost introduced himself, "the last king of the Vordanians.". As Mavis watched him, she saw nothing but raw fire in his eyes. Untamed, complete fury. Anatesia leaned down over Mavis, "You do not seek power…" he concluded, "why have you come here?"

"There is somebody else, someone else who passed by very recently," said Mavis, "he's also seeking the power that this planet offers. I want to kill him before he can make it.". Mavis knew that telling Anatesia her goals probably wasn't a good idea, but she didn't exactly care either. If he attacked her, Mavis could probably survive.

The ghost, however, didn't react as Mavis expected. He sighed, "Another person did indeed pass quite recently...a few hours ago actually….you may go, I'm too tired to fight you anyways...ah, there we go."

Anatesia slid back into his tomb, and his tomb slid back to reveal a marble staircase underneath. Mavis looked up, surprised, "You're just gonna let me through?" she asked, not hiding her expression, "you're not going to fight?"

Anatesia's voice floated back to her, "I've fought too many battles in my life," he said. Mavis could swear that she also detected a small yawn, "I want some peace and quiet for death. Now, don't make me fight you. That would be awfully boring."

Mavis paused, "Um...alright then," she said, "Thanks...I guess…"

Mavis began walking down the marble staircase. Around her, the walls were surprisingly clean, and the staircase was completely free of grime and dust. This struck Mavis as odd. Everything else in the temple that she's visited had so far been old and decrepit. What made this place so clean?

The stairway eventually opened up into a large cave-like space. This was the one place Mavis actually felt clean in. The floor was shiny and spotless. There was no blood, no grime, nothing. In the back of the room, Mavis saw somebody kneeling down over something. As Mavis drew near, she heard voices whispering to that person.

It was Cedron. He had survived.

Cedron suddenly stood up, and the voices stopped whispering. Around him, dark purple curls of mist came out from underneath him. His armor was scratched up and slightly broken, but otherwise, he looked fine.

"You surprise me, Mavis," said Cedron, his voice surprisingly low, "how you passed through the tests so quickly, I don't know….however, it makes no difference now. The power of Vordania resides within me. You cannot gain its power for another month, when the cycle resets. Prepare to die

* * *

 **Power Levels represent how strong characters are relative to each other. I'm not going to mention the levels of the bad guys/**

 **[Mavis Dracula]**

 **Current Power Lvl: 100**

 **[Johnny]**

 **Current Power Lvl: 11**

 **[Fubuki]**

 **Current Power Lvl: 23**

 **[Techno]**

 **Note: My chem midterm is tmrw, which is why I couldn't update as much, sorry :(**

 **Current Power Lvl: 29**


	90. The Greatest Prediction

Next thing Mavis knew, she was blasted against the ceiling so hard she blasted right through it, flying through 700 feet of rock and dirt, and blasting out back onto the planet's surface. Mavis's extrasensory perception kicked in, and she reacted fast enough to block the next attack from Cedron, who came hurtling at her from underneath her.

Cedron flew straight at Mavis, blasting a solid blue beam of light straight at her, but Mavis vanished right before it hit her, spiraling back to the ground. She was surprised. Cedron was legitimately strong now. Maybe it was a bad idea to come down here alone.

Mavis jumped out of the way as Cedron flew down at her, blasting the area Mavis was in to a massive, 5-mile diameter crater. Mavis jumped up, using telekinesis to block Cedron's relentless attacks. She saw an opening, and took it, blasting him back with a wave of energy, sending Cedron flying into the ground, where he was blasted ten miles into the ground.

Cedron got up, spitting, "You are truly a worthy opponent," he growled, "but you're no match for me now. I cannot lose. I cannot grow tired. I will never be defeated. That is the gift I came here for, and it's been granted to me."

"We'll see about that." said Mavis. She hurtled down at Cedron, accelerating so fast that she completely vanished. Next thing Cedron knew, he was blasted back harder into the sandy ground, flying even deeper into the crust. Mavis felt the entire planet shake as she did this, but didn't stop.

Bringing her fist back, Mavis went in for another attack, but her punch was intercepted by Cedron. Mavis was thrown up into the air, going so fast she ionized the air particles around her, causing electricity to crackle in the area she flew past.

Mavis growled. She twisted her body back, blocking Cedron's next attack right in time. The force of the attack caused a gust of wind to fly in all directions, blowing sand up in massive waves. Cedron was positively _enjoying_ this. "That's right, Mavis…" he growled, "you may be strong, but you grow weaker with every passing second. I, meanwhile, only grow faster and stronger."

To be honest, Mavis doubted this statement. She didn't feel any more tired than since she first landed on the planet. In fact, sleep deprivation was kind of getting to her right now…

"But you are getting annoyingly persistent," said Cedron, "I guess I'll just finish you off...the others who came here were fools. They hid their powers. I will use it. Once I finish getting rid of you, your friends...Johnny and Fubuki...and Kolt? They will all die."

Mavis's vision tunneled. She remembered killing Johnny in the temple. She would _not_ let something like that happen. Without warning, Mavis flew straight at Cedron, punching him with as much force as possible. Cedron went flying back into the ground, but got back up quickly.

"You are nothing but an annoyance…" hissed Cedron, "yes...I know what to do…" his body began to glow with a cold purple aura again, "I will release all my energy into this planet. That way, if you do somehow survive this battle, you won't have a way of defeating me...Vordania will die, with me as its last beholder!"

The thing that happened next surprised even Mavis. There was a crackling noise, as purple light streaked out from Cedron's hands, into the planet. A massive burst of light, as the surface of the planet was engulfed with the aura, and the next thing she knew, Mavis's instincts had gotten hold of her, and she was rocketing off the surface of the planet. Her instincts were shooting danger signals like crazy.

Mavis flew into the atmosphere, looking back right as the planet began to slowly….crumble. It was a strange sight. The planet was literally sucking itself into itself, condensing itself smaller and smaller. At the center of it, was a bright purple glow, which was where Cedron must've been.

Without hesitation, Mavis flew down at Cedron's location. Whatever he was doing, it wasn't good for her. She had to stop Cedron before he would do whatever he was planning on doing. As Mavis reentered the atmosphere, she realized something. Light was...bending.

That was strange.

Mavis flew further down, until she spotted Cedron, right in the middle of the purple aura. She flew down at full speed, slamming Cedron with enough force to cause a new tectonic plate to form in the crust. But even so, the crust was slowly dissolving.

Cedron, who had an arm ripped from the punch, stared in bewilderment. He didn't appear to be in any pain, so that was a downside, but he still looked very surprised. "How did you...injure me?" he said, legitimately amazed.

Mavis didn't wait for more questions. She telekinetically grabbed Cedron, hurling him against the ground again. Right as she did that, however, it happened. The crust completely dissolved. And Mavis saw what was destroying the planet.

Cedron had created a black hole in the center of the planet. In front of Mavis, Cedron took a little time to glance at the black hole. Mavis took this to her advantage. She disappeared, reappearing in front of him, and punching him straight into the black hole.

Before Mavis could even pat herself on the back for her work, however, she noticed where she was. Massive chunks of rock and sandstone were still flying around dangerously. Most of them were being sucked into the black hole, or else being slowly dissolved the immense gravity.

It was then when Mavis saw it. The flagship. It was in warp. Mavis saw its warp engines activated, but even warp speed was not enough to escape the black hole's gravity. Mavis had to do something. Johnny, Fubuki, Techno, and Kolt were all on board.

Completely forgetting about Cedron, Mavis flew over to the flagship. She could feel the gravity's resistance to her flight strength, but pushed through it, accelerating to 2c, and phased through the bridge glass, straight into the bridge, where she saw Fubuki and Johnny scrambling around, with Techno at the front. In the corner, Kolt was sleeping, which was strange.

Mavis didn't take any time for introductions or explanations. She marched up to the controls, putting her hands on it. Sure enough, the engines were working as hard as they could. Techno was seeing to that. But even so, they weren't going fast enough to escape the black hole.

Whatever. Mavis had another idea. "I'll be back!" she yelled to Johnny. She then vanished, reappearing right behind the flagship, and grabbing the back of it telekinetically. She formed a telekinetic chain between her and the ship, essentially tying her to it, and concentrated.

As Mavis began building up her telekinetic energy, a massive block of stone smashed into the side of the ship, exploding and sending fragments of rock flying everywhere. One of the thrusters flickered and complete shut down. Mavis felt the ship slowly falling towards the black hole, which was behind her now.

Mavis chose a spot in her field of vision in which she really hoped there was no star, sighed, and threw the flagship like a frisbee towards that spot. Immediately, the entire flagship completely vanished, as Mavis had thrown them directly into warp.

All Mavis could see were streaks of white and blue light flying past her. In front of her, she saw the flagship, now far beyond the black hole's reach, luckily. Mavis phased through the back of the flagship, running over to the bridge, where she found Fubuki and Johnny resting, with Techno even looking a little laid back.

"Mavis!" Johnny stood up when he saw her, walking over and giving her a large hug, "you were down at that planet for a while, we were getting a little worried! What happened with the black hole? It came out of nowhere."

"Cedron started the black hole," said Mavis, "but I threw him into his own black hole, so that problem should've been taken care of by now. What's happened here, anyways? Why's Kolt not helping you guys right now?"

"Kolt….he….uh...took a big hit from the captain of the ship," said Fubuki, "he should be fine, according to Techno, but he hasn't woken up since he was hit. We've cleared out the entire ship while waiting for you, by the way."

"Alright, that's good…" murmured Mavis, "anyways, I just chucked us in a random direction, so once we come out of warp, we'll probably be sitting in the middle of nowhere. What're we gonna do from here?"

"We must keep running," cut in Techno, "according to my calculations, the black hole that we have just encountered may lead into an alternate universe, in which Cedron would still be alive in. If he is to come back to this universe through a black hole, then he will continue his hunt for you."

Mavis shrugged it off quickly, "Really?" she said, "If Cedron's in an 'alternate universe' or whatever, then he's far from able to kill me. Don't worry about that. We should be worrying about what the Nameless Discipline will do if they get their hands on us…"

"Right now," interrupted Johnny, "you should be getting some sleep. Go and take that bed over there," he pointed to a bed at the corner of the room, "you look terrible right now. Some sleep should be able to fix you up."

"Yeah...you _are_ right, I am sleepy…" yawned Mavis, walking down over to the bed, "tell me when we reach wherever we're going towards," she said to Johnny, "the last thing I want is a bad surprise.". With that, Mavis fell asleep.

* * *

Mavis really shouldn't have fallen asleep. Because falling asleep meant for the possibility of having dreams. And she's been having alot of dreams lately. Most of the times, it was just his dad, talking to her, giving her advice. But this time, it was something else. Something she actually recognized.

She was in a room made of glass and mirrors. Mavis recognized it instantly as the place she had seen the seer, in the dream right before she fought Cedron for the first time. She didn't like her. She had this creepy aura that followed her wherever she went.

"Mavis Dracula…." a voice spoke behind Mavis, startling her. She wheeled around in time to see the seer sitting right behind her, "you are surprisingly durable…" she murmured, "even I did not foresee that you would actually defeat Cedron in a battle...especially after he obtained Vordanian power…"

Mavis's eyes narrowed, "what do you mean?" she asked, "you predicted that I would be defeated by Cedron?"

"I predicted that you would not be able to defeat Cedron," said the seer, "my predictions are never incorrect. They never have been. But, today, you proved me wrong. Cedron is defeated. And that means that my prophecy did not work."

"Does that mean that he's dead?" asked Mavis, leaning forward a little, "does that mean that I won't have to deal with him anymore? You should know, you're a seer, you can see the future and stuff like that."

The seer did not answer Mavis's question. Instead, around Mavis, the mirrors and glass began to show a different image. Rather than show Mavis's reflection, they began to show scenes of carnage. Planets, completely destroyed. Innocents slaughtered at the billions. "You have caused a tidal wave of possibilities to come forth for the future, Mavis Dracula," said the seer, "your very presence has disturbed the order of the universe. Because of that, you will need to die."

"What?" Mavis retracted herself, "what do you mean?" she hissed.

"Do you not see what you have done?" asked the seer, "do you not see how many people have lost their lives because of you? Two planets, destroyed. Billions of innocents, snuffed out of their lives. You may think that you use your powers for good, but your powers bring just as much suffering towards those around you. Look at Fubuki. Look at Kolt. You ripped them out of their lives for nothing."

"What do you mean, I'll die?" hissed Mavis, "is that a prophecy? But it can't be. You can only see the future, not create it."

The seer laughed, "If only you knew…" she cackled, "My gift is future sight, yes...but I have also learned the art of future manipulation. You _will not_ die a natural death, Mavis...you will be killed by someone…"

Mavis stepped closer to the seer, "Listen," she growled, "I'm trying to do the right thing, if you could tell me how I can-"

"It is done!" said the seer jovially, "good luck, Mavis….you already have one problem on your hands...I'll bother you no further…"

With that, the dream ended.


	91. Pirate Attack

Mavis woke up to the sound of Johnny's voice. "Mavis, come on, get up, we've just jumped out of warp...come on...up you get…"

Mavis's groggy vision slowly sharpened into focus. At the front of the bridge, Fubuki and Techno were talking about something. Kolt was sitting up, rubbing his head, and waved when he saw Mavis glance his way, and Johnny was right next to Mavis.

"Ugh...where are we?" asked Mavis, looking out the bridge glass windows. Outside, all she saw were asteroids and giant chunks of rock that floated around, some of them hitting the sides of the ship. All around them, Mavis could hear the sound of rock grinding against armor.

"We seemed to have stopped in an asteroid field," said Techno, "but an asteroid field always orbits something...so that means that we must be near some sort of star. Let me see...ah, there we go.". On the bridge display screens, a map showed up, of where they were. Sure enough, they were in the outer regions of a star system named the Deisler System.

"According to the ship logs," said Techno, "the Deisler System is known for smuggling and gang activity. Illegal space mining happens alot here as well. It says here that if you are to enter into this system, you should always have a heavily guarded escort…"

"Well, that sucks…" growled Mavis, "bring us closer to the sun, and arm any weapons on the ship that still work after the black hole...have all power diverted to shields, and watch the scanners as carefully as possible."

"Alright," said Techno, "here we go…"

Slowly, the flagship began to make its way towards the center of the star system. Asteroids around them were blown to bits by the flagship's point-defense lasers, which cut them down easily. Techno carefully maneuvered through the field of rocks and debris, and eventually made it out.

As Mavis watched the asteroid field slowly vanish behind them, she began to tell Fubuki, Johnny, and Kolt about what happened in her dream. Kolt immediately flinched once Mavis mentioned the seer, but otherwise kept calm. Johnny, however, was seething.

"So this seer has never said a prophecy that hasn't come true until now….and now she wants to kill you?" he asked incredulously, "we need to find the seer, and make her reverse whatever she's done. If anyone would have that type of power, then she would."

"I don't know.." Mavis growled, "I hate these stupid prophecies. Why can't people just leave my future to myself?"

"Well…there are rumors that the seer can reverse prophecies," said Kolt, "and her location is well known to the public...so we _can_ theoretically go and confront her, but fighting the seer is considered as suicidal. She's too powerful. She can control the future."

"Then we'll go to her location, find her, and force her to reverse the future." said Johnny, "we have to do this. We might even have a chance to kill the seer. She seems like nothing but trouble right now, anyways."

"Yeah...but that's only an if." said Mavis, "Kolt, why is finding the seer and confronting her considered to be suicidal? She seems harmless in a physical fight, at least. And she can only control the long-term future, so-"

"It's not that," said Kolt, "The seer herself is harmless in battle, but she lives in a tribe of witches...evil things...they are known for torturing and killing anyone who gets near the seer. Those who speak with the seer and return are only the ones whom the seer has invited. If you guys go…"

"Yeah, we're going." said Mavis confidently, "I'll take care of the witches. They shouldn't be a problem for me…"

"What if the seer's already seen the future?" asked Kolt frantically, "what if she knows that we want to attack her? What if she's told her witches what's about to happen? If that's the case, then they'll be prepared for us as well."

"Whatever," cut in Fubuki, "let's face our situation right now. We need fuel and some way to warp. Without that, we can't do anything. Are there any towns, or cities, or anything in this place? I mean, you said that smugglers come here alot-"

"Yeah," said Kolt, "um...there should be a small town in the second planet from the sun. I forgot what it was called by now, but I remember raiding it one time for the Nameless Discipline. There're people who live there. Fuel should be easy to find."

"Let's go there then," said Mavis, "come on. Techno, steer the ship towards the second planet, full speed. We need that warp fuel as soon as possible."

"Of course, Miss Dracula." said Techno. The ship quickly angled itself a little, and began to go faster. Soon enough, they had passed the fifth planet. Mavis was quite surprised. This flagship _did_ go fast.

But then it happened. As they were flying towards the fourth planet, a small squad of smaller ships came out of warp right next to them, immediately opening fire on the flagship, knocking out some of the guns.

"Pirates!" yelled Kolt, right as a ion torpedo slammed into the side of the ship, causing a massive explosion belowdecks. "Use the main batteries! Go!"

Techno was already on it. Four of the five main gun turrets swiveled up, firing massive 37-inch shells that flew at the ships. But even Techno's computerized aiming couldn't keep track of the pirates' unpredictable ships.

Two more ion torpedoes hit the massive flagship, causing the entire ship to shake. The engines completely cut off. They were dead in space. Still, the cannons continued to fire. One of the enemy ships took a direct hit, and was instantly vaporized.

The front display screen suddenly started fizzing in and out, and on the screen, a few words appeared. They were too small for Mavis to read without extrasensory perception, but Techno quickly told them what it said.

"They're trying to make contact with us," said Techno, "should I put them through?"

"Yes, do that." said Mavis. To be honest, she was kind of looking forward to beating these guys up. Johnny was eyeing her nervously. "Mavis...don't get too cocky," he warned, "you might be strong...but these are pirates we're talking about."

Mavis nodded, "I know." she said, "come on, patch them through."

On the screen, the regular ship display screen was replaced by a rather large man. He was fat, and was incredibly toothy as well. He was completely bald, something which Mavis would've laughed at, if it weren't for the fact that he was also carrying a massive machine gun under his arms.

"Ya' the captain o' this ship?" the man growled at her, "well, lady, you're ta' open up yer hangar bays. We'll be headin' through any moment. Failure to comply will lead ta' yer instant annihilation."

Mavis smiled. Just how she wanted. "Yes, very well, we'll do that." she said, feigning exhaustion and defeat, "you can enter into the hangar bays. It'll open any moment around now. You'll have anything you want on board this ship."

"Heh," Mavis heard amusement in the other captain's voice, "I have plenty o' wealth. I'm the biggest and baddest pirate in this sector. I have everything I've ever wanted. The only thing I wan' right now is that lovely body o' yours, lady. I gotta keep my men pleased. And you'll be good at doing that."

Mavis felt Johnny seeth next to her, but ignored him for now. She had to play along. She looked over to Techno, who was waiting for her order, and said to him, "lower the hangar bay doors. Now. Let them in."

"Okay…" said Techno, but he also looked a little worried. He pressed a few buttons on the control panel, and said, "the hangar bay doors are lowering now….yeah, they're coming in….they're about to land in the hangar bays."

Mavis nodded. She turned to the captain of the pirates, "we've lowered the hangar bay doors." she said, "you guys can come in now. I'll meet you in the hangar. There, we can discuss...the terms of my submission."

Those words sounded weird to Mavis. Partly because she's never surrendered before. The pirate captain, however, didn't seem to see the lie. He laughed, clapping his hands together, "you are too easy to defeat…" he said jovially, "very well...I will be…. _enjoying_ you in a few minutes."

With that, the communications cut out, the screen becoming black again.

Mavis turned to Johnny, Fubuki, Kolt, and Techno, who were all eyeing her nervously, "Relax, guys," she said dismissively, "I'll kill every pirate they have, we'll board one of their ships, we'll kill everyone on board, and we'll warp to the seer's place. It shouldn't be too difficult. Once I'm done killing the pirates, I'll send out a signal of some sort. If you see a blue glow around the ship, it means that everything's clear."

Johnny looked as if he wanted to argue, but decided against it. He sighed, nodding, "Go get 'em, Mavis." he said, patting Mavis on the back, "and make sure to not destroy their ships in the process!" he called after her.

"I won't." said Mavis confidently. She walked out of the bridge, heading down the hall, and into the hangar bays. Before she entered the hangar bays, she turned into a bat, flying up onto the ceiling, where she assessed the situation herself.

There were five ships in the hangar bay. Their police cruiser had been destroyed. Mavis cursed. They could've used the police cruiser to warp to the seer's planet. But it was too late. The other four were slightly larger pirate ships. Most of them looked like modified cargo ships, except they were armed with guns and warp drives.

Sitting in front of the largest of these pirate ships, was the captain himself. Mavis recognized him immediately as the one she talked to through the screen. He was surrounded by a group of fat men armed with crude-looking weapons and guns. Some of them had eyepatches, which made them look kind of comical.

"Ugh...where is that nugget?" Mavis heard the captain growl, "if she doesn't show up in a few minutes, I'll send ya two ta' go look fer her. She looked awfully pretty, I'll tell you that. She'll do well in my collection…"

"Is it true?" asked one of the other men, "is she really that good looking? What's gonna happen to her once we get our hands on her?"

"Ah, don't worry," said the Captain, "she'll be' chained up in te' back o' the ship. Anyone who wants ter please themselves can go and do it with her. We'll sell her out ter the planet afterwards, and make alot o' money."

"But...shouldn't we keep her to ourselves?" asked the same man, "what good would she serve on the planet?"

"Ah, we'll tell the planet tha' she's a government official...she'll probably be tortured and raped and whatnot, but in the end, she'll be executed in public. Point is, we'll be makin' money out of it. And that's what matters. Where is she, anyways?"

Mavis vanished, reappearing right behind the captain, "I'm right here." she said. The captain jumped, looking at her and stumbling back. Before he could do anything else, Mavis had grabbed him, and had snapped his neck easily. His men immediately roared and ran after Mavis, shooting their weapons.

It was too easy. Mavis killed each one with fluency, either snapping their necks, or throwing them out of the hangar bay shields, in which they would suffocate to death. The pirates eventually figured out that fighting Mavis was hopeless, and began to try to escape the hangar bays. One of the ships slowly rose above the ground, its engines powering up, but Mavis showed no mercy. One flick of the wrist, and the entire ship went crashing back to the ground.

Mavis walked onto the largest pirate ship, a ship a few meters larger than their police cruiser. She quickly killed everyone in it with her life force powers, and walked into the bridge, pulling the two pirate pilots off of the controls. She flicked her hands, and the entire flagship was illuminated blue.

Johnny, Fubuki, Techno, and Kolt should be on their way any time around now. Mavis turned around, killing a pirate who had attempted to enter into the ship she had just taken over, right as Johnny and Fubuki ran through the doors, their hands glowing. Fubuki immediately spotted Mavis, and yelled something to Johnny, who nodded.

Techno and Kolt came through next. Kolt quickly ran onto the ship Mavis was in, guarding the doors, and Johnny grabbed one of the enemy ships magnetically and threw it out the hangar bay shields. Fubuki demolished the rest with her fireballs.

As Johnny and Fubuki also clambered into the ship Mavis was on, Mavis began to flip switches and push buttons. Around her, the engines began to whir yet again. The ship rose slowly, and flew out the hangar bay. Mavis turned to techno, "Enter in the coordinates of where the seer is." she said, "let's go and end these stupid prophecies."


	92. Intercepted

"Alright…" murmured Techno, "engaging warp...Kolt, you sure those coordinates are correct? We don't want to end up warping into a star or something. That wouldn't be good. Also make sure that it's the shortest route possible. We want some leftover energy to use on this thing's stealth systems."

"This ship has a stealth system?" asked Mavis, "how did they get one? I thought pirates were supposed to be like...poor and stuff. These guys seem pretty wealthy actually. If you only listened to their captain talking…"

"This ship comes with ion torpedoes, burst lasers, beam lasers, and a cloaking device," said Techno promptly, "for pirates, that _is_ pretty impressive. Whoever the captain was, he clearly came from a wealthy background. Or maybe he just stole all this stuff. It's hard to tell."

"Yeah, whatever…" murmured Kolt, "anyways, yeah, those coordinates should be correct. Everyone knows the coordinates of the seer's planet, but nobody goes there. We all fear her. Even Cedron feared her. He probably still does."

Under normal circumstances, Mavis would've been suspicious of Kolt setting coordinates for them, but her extrasensory perception told her that Kolt was lying. Maybe Kolt was completely on their side by now. Mavis flinched, as she remembered the seer's words. _You ripped them out of their lives for nothing_.

Kolt was completely innocent. He was simply doing his job. But then Mavis got into his life, and forced him into a bandwagon of near-death experiences. Kolt seemed pretty chill, but Mavis was going to have to keep an eye on him in case of betrayal.

By now, they were in full warp. Around them, whitish-blue light flew past the cockpit windows. Mavis watched area around them, wondering how she had gotten into this position. And even more than that, wondering if the seer's prophecy would come true. If she would die.

What would happen, if Mavis died? Mavis's mind ran. Johnny...he would be completely devastated. He would probably even commit suicide if she died. Mavis remembered how close she came to self destruction when Johnny had died, before her dad intervened. Then Fubuki. Without her, Fubuki would be alone in this world. Mavis was her teacher. She was supposed to take care of Fubuki. Kolt….Kolt would be a dead man without Mavis. He wasn't very strong, and he he was weak-willed. Still, he _was_ a good person. Mavis clenched her fists. She couldn't die. If she did...then everything she's held close would also die with her. Mavis realized that she was the only thing preventing her friends from certain death. Without her, they would've all died long ago…

But the prophecy has been spoken. Mavis _will_ die. It had to happen, no matter what. The seer's prophecies always came true. But then Mavis also remembered that the seer's prediction about her never defeating Cedron had failed. Mavis had somehow gotten through that prophecy.

Mavis sighed, and stood up. She was so lost in thought, she didn't even notice everyone else retreating back into the staterooms to sleep. She was the only one in the cockpit, apart from Techno, who was overseeing the controls and engine functions.

Mavis quickly walked over to the back of the cockpit, opening the doors and walking to the back, where she opened the doors to a stateroom, right in time to see Fubuki and Kolt kissing on a bed inside of it. As soon as Mavis opened the doors, Fubuki jumped, sending Kolt flying back into the bed with an accidental release of telekinetic energy.

Mavis stared. Fubuki's face was nearly as red as a tomato, and her eyes were glowing the brightest that Mavis had ever seen them. "Uh…." Mavis paused. She had never considered the possibility that Fubuki and Kolt were...well...in a relationship. "I'll...uh...leave you guys." said Mavis lamely, quickly closing the doors telekinetically.

Mavis headed down a separate hallway, walking into an empty stateroom this time, and dropping onto the bed. She cursed. This wasn't good. Fubuki and Kolt being in a relationship was not good. They were quite happy with each other...they may even become husband and wife...but they would constantly be under threat of death. It would be a bittersweet marriage at best. And it was all because of Mavis.

Slowly, Mavis began to feel her eyes drop slowly. Eventually, she fell asleep to the sound of the engines whirring in the background.

* * *

"Sir, we're picking up a warp signature," said the technical droid, "it's approaching from 498.78 387.45 129.88. According to my scans, this ship belongs to the infamous Jack Rafey, a space terrorist, and convicted murderer. I would suggest capturing it immediately."

"Hmmm…" the Commanding Officer stroked his chin, "are you certain that this ship belongs to the terrorist? Scan the ship again to make sure. If it still reads the same thing, then snatch them out of warp using the gravity links."

The commanding officer was sitting in a small military outpost, on the edge of the Aurelius System, a star system that was in the outer edges of the Nameless Discipline's territory. His main job was to alert his superiors if anyone decided to invade. Or, in this case, his job was to apprehend criminals.

The outpost itself was relatively small, only about the size of half a football field. There were about 40 fighters in the hangar bays, along with 200 swarm droids that were currently on sleep mode. Apart from that, four gun turrets stood on the sides of the outpost, and in total, there were only 70 men garrisoned at the outpost.

"Sir, the scan has been complete. It still shows the same readings." said the technical droid, "should I engage gravity links? Our power reserves are at a maximum right now, so the gravity links would work at maximum efficiency if we are to use it now."

The commanding officer nodded, "Engage the gravity links," he said, "pull them out of warp. Have our cannons trained on them, but don't fire. Alert high command, and tell them that we have a criminal to hand over to them."

"Alright," said the technical droid, "engaging high speed gravity links now. The ship should be pulled out of warp any minute around now."

* * *

Mavis's eyes flew open. Something was wrong. She growled as she sat up. She was actually sleeping decently that night. No dreams or anything. Everything seemed normal. The ship was silent, and the engines were still whirring peacefully in the background. Was it just a fragment of Mavis's imagination?

But Mavis's senses never betrayed her. Something was wrong with the ship. Mavis silently walked over to the cockpit, walking in, and went over to Techno, who was sitting at the front, monitoring the controls and the ship functions. "Is the ship alright?" she asked, "I felt...something not right…"

Techno glanced up at her, "Well, the ship is starting to tilt a little towards the right…" he said, "I thought it was a minor error, but it's starting to grow really annoying. I was going to alert you if it kept going like this, but you seemed to already sense it."

Mavis nodded, "So...the ship is listing?" she asked, a little confused, "I mean...it's space...so it isn't very problematic, is it?". Techno shook his head, "When I say that the ship is tilting, I mean that its literally heading towards the right...it's not listing, its just slowly facing another direction, as if something's...pulling on it."

Mavis was about to say something, when it happened. A massive tug on the ship, that sent Techno flying across the cockpit. Mavis quickly stabilized herself, and straightened up, "What was _that_?" she asked, her hands glowing.

Techno scrambled back to the controls, "As I predicted," he said, "we are being pulled in by some sort of warp-interception device. Something is pulling us out of warp right now. According to the radar map, we're being pulled towards a system in the outer regions…"

There was suddenly another jolt, as the ship was completely forced out of warp. The white and blue streaks of light that were right outside the cockpit were replaced by the scene of a star system. About a mile in front of them, was a defense platform that the ship was going towards.

The cockpit doors opened yet again, as Fubuki and Kolt came through the door. Both of them looked alert and ready to fight. Kolt even had a rifle gripped in his hands. Behind them was Johnny, who quickly strode past the doors and went over to Mavis, "What's going on?" he asked, "I wake woken up by this-"

"INCOMING!" yelled Kolt, pointing.

Mavis turned around, right as she saw dozens of small blue projectiles go flying towards the ship. Techno took the initiative, slamming down on the controls, causing the ship to bank hard right. The projectiles flew around them, and came around for another pass. This time, even Techno didn't have a fast enough reaction time for it. Mavis's telekinesis clicked into play, as she deflected all but one of them.

Instantly, as soon as the blue projectile hit the ship, a blue crackle of electricity went around it, causing lights to flicker, and making the display screens go dim. Johnny looked around, right as a light bulb above him exploded. Mavis also noted that the ship seemed to have...stopped.

"What was that?" asked Johnny, glancing at Techno expectantly, "was that like an EMP or something? Why did we stop?"

"Whoever pulled us out of warp seems to want us alive," said Techno, "unfortunately, since we're in a highly-recognized terrorist command ship, it is quite likely that the authorities have simply mistaken us for terrorists, even though we really aren't. However, that hardly makes a difference in this case. Either way, if we're to surrender, they'll likely stick us in jail."

Mavis growled. Great. She quickly spotted a few police cruisers that were surrounding them. These weren't regular police cruisers either. These cruisers were armed with bigger guns, and also had torpedoes on them. Now that they were without power, Techno, Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt were all at the mercy of police.

Mavis wasn't about to let any of them die. She quickly grabbed Techno, deactivating him and shoving him into her pocket. She then went over to Johnny, "We're gonna have to bail," she said hurriedly, "these guys are prepared for us. Once we land, they'll have an army waiting for us.". Johnny slowly nodded, "Alright…" he muttered, "so what do we do? Not the first time I've been in this situation…"

"Here." Mavis formed an air bubble around Johnny's face using telekinesis. "We're gonna be bailing the ship." she announced to Fubuki and Kolt, who both stared back at her. Fubuki looked quite orderly. But Kolt looked terrified.

"Oh come on, Kolt, this isn't the first time you've done this," said Mavis, "here you go…" With a wave of her hand, air bubbles were formed around Fubuki and Kolt's mouths. "We're going to be heading towards for their defense platform," said Mavis, "we'll hit them before they have time to organize their men."

Fubuki and Johnny both nodded. Kolt whimpered quietly, but otherwise didn't seem to object. Mavis grabbed Johnny and Fubuki's hands, letting Kolt grab hold of her shoulders. A few seconds later, the four of them were ready.

Mavis concentrated, and tore the front half of their ship apart, causing them to be sucked directly into space. Mavis, now used to the feeling of flying in space, looked ahead of herself, zipping past the police cruisers, and heading straight for the defense platform. Behind her, Mavis saw with her extrasensory perception energy bolts being shot after her.

Mavis, after reaching an area close enough to the defense platform, grabbed Fubuki, and chucked her like a frisbee towards the hangar bays of the platform. Next came Johnny, and after him, Kolt. It must've been quite confusing for them, since they couldn't communicate in space.

Mavis accelerated, going in front of Fubuki, blocking the bullets and shells that were now whizzing towards them from the defense platform, acting as a sort of shield for Fubuki, Johnny, and Kolt. The police cruisers were by now far away from them, Mavis having accelerated the four of them fast enough to escape the cruisers.

Mavis was the first to land. She smashed into the hangar bays, going through the shields, and demolishing the area she landed in. Mavis got up, brushing dust off herself and looking around, right as she noticed something. Fubuki was in the hangar bay. Kolt was in the hangar bay. Where was Johnny?

Her question was answered right as her extrasensory perception kicked in, showing Mavis the horrible scene of Johnny getting caught in a capture beam from one of the police cruisers.


	93. Outpost Runaways

"Oh shit." was Mavis's first reaction. She didn't take into account the possibility of the police cruisers using capture beams. Mavis quickly turned to Fubuki, "You and Kolt hold out the troops here!" she yelled, "I'll get Johnny."

Fubuki nodded, her hands igniting right as a dozen enemy soldiers ran through the doors in the hangar, firing at them. Kolt ran behind cover, firing his rifle, as Fubuki threw fireballs at the enemy lines, sending brimstone and flames everywhere.

Mavis launched herself up, exiting the hangar bays and flying towards the police cruiser that had taken Johnny. She landed on its side, and phased through the wall, entering into a hallway with four officers. Before they could even react, Mavis had killed all of them. She looked around, her extrasensory perception glowing, as she tried to locate where Johnny was.

The police cruiser was surprisingly large, and it actually took Mavis some time to locate him. He was in the back room, being interrogated by the officers. And from what it looked like, the officers weren't afraid of using blunt force to make him talk as well. Mavis instantly vanished, reappearing right in front of the officers who were interrogating Johnny.

With two fatal strikes, the officers were killed instantly. Mavis ran over to Johnny, who was now unconscious. Whatever the officers were doing, it definitely wasn't good. They also seemed to have somehow negated his magnetic powers.

"Hey, stop!" Mavis turned around right as an officer behind her shot a gun. Mavis easily dodged the bullet, grabbing the officer and throwing him back across the hallway like a frisbee. He slammed against the opposite wall and slid down, unconscious. Mavis grabbed Johnny's body and lifted it, running down the hallway, going towards the airlock-

She just reached the airlock, and was about to form an oxygen bubble around Johnny's face, when someone remotely opened the door, sucking Mavis and Johnny out instantly. Johnny didn't have oxygen. A few seconds out here like this, and he would be dead. Mavis knew she didn't have time. She vanished, reappearing right next to Johnny, grabbing him, and flying back into the hangar bay all within less than a second.

At the hangar bay, Fubuki and Kolt were holding off the soldiers alright on their own. Mavis set Johnny down on the ground gently. He was still alive. Mavis quickly formed a sphere of compressed oxygen around Johnny's face, trying to syphon down the air into his mouth. She reactivated Techno, who began to treat for Johnny, and turned back to the main battle.

Fubuki was standing in the open, deflecting most of the shots using telekinesis, and hurling fireballs at everything she saw. Kolt was behind some demolished fighters, and fired his weapons from time to time. The enemy soldiers, however, were growing more prevalent. The began to fire rockets, using small artillery to demolish the area they were in. Fubuki was knocked back as an artillery shell made a direct collision with her telekinetic shield, and Kolt's cover was blown, sending him flying back and scrambling for another wall to hide behind. Fubuki seemed to have trouble telekinetically lifting them. "They're heavy!" she yelled to Mavis, "they're wearing some kind of armor that prevents-"

Mavis crushed every soldier and every artillery piece in the hangar to dust. Fubuki gaped at Mavis, "How did you-"

"Don't ask," said Mavis, "Techno, is Johnny alright?". Techno, who was in the back of the hangar treating Johnny, looked back at her, "He's suffering from extreme oxygen depletion, but I think I can get him back…" he said, "it'll take some time though."

Mavis nodded, turning to Fubuki and Kolt, "Come on," she said, "let's go and take over this outpost, before they send any more men to try to kill us. They're getting awfully annoying right now. Kolt, stay behind Fubuki. Both of you stay behind me. Techno, take care of Johnny back here, alright?"

Kolt and Fubuki both nodded, and Techno looked up, "Of course, Miss Dracula." he said. RIght as he did, however, more soldiers began to run through the doors, their guns blazing. Mavis was quickly forced to kill the soldiers before she could say anything else.

"Come on!" she yelled, leading the way through the door. Behind it, they were met face to face with three more terrified looking soldiers, who were quickly knocked out by Mavis. They turned left, then right, and eventually went right into the control station. As they entered, they saw an alien sitting in front of a computer, frantically typing things in, and yelling into some sort of communications channel.

"Yes, yes, I understand that you're pinned down in the Liren System!" he was saying, "but I'm telling you...yes, yes, it's them! The ones in the prophecy! They're here, my best men were sent to stop them, but-"

He noticed Mavis, Fubuki, and Kolt watching him. "They're right here!" he screamed into the communications channel, "send help, immediately! Send-" Mavis snapped his neck, killing him instantly. She closed down the communications channel, and turned to Fubuki and Kolt, "it sounds as if they were calling in for help," she said, "we should abandon this place as soon as possible, before-"

In front of Mavis, a ship suddenly warped in. It wasn't big, like the main military battleships, but it wasn't a police cruiser either. It was thin and sleek, only big enough for a maximum of two people. It quickly flew in an arc around the station, blowing up the police cruisers that were surrounding it.

Mavis didn't hesitate. She turned to Fubuki and Kolt, "Stay here." she ordered, then she vanished, speeding down the hallway, and going over to Techno, "Techno, get to the control center, there's a ship that's gonna be landing in here any second. I don't know if its military or not, but it's going to land here. Come on...up you get…"

Mavis helped Techno lift Johnny's body up, and had him go back to the control room. Mavis was about to follow Techno in, before she saw the ship enter into the hangar bays. It landed silently, and on the side of it, a hatch that was perfectly concealed within the sleek walls of it opened. A tall figure wearing a cloak and mask walked out. He looked familiar...has Mavis ever seen him?

The figure saw Mavis, and began to approach her. "There you are," he said. His voice also stirred something in Mavis's memory. "I've been searching for you for a long time. Last time we met, you defeated me without a challenge. I'm here to change that.". It was then when Mavis finally recognized him. It was the person who she slammed against the wall when she was first on Cedron's flagship. That was a while ago.

"I will defeat you." said the man. He ran straight at Mavis, alarmingly quickly. Mavis dodged his attack easily, right as the man activated an energy sword that he drove right at Mavis, who blocked it easily. Mavis could easily kill the man, but decided against it. Something told her that this guy wasn't bad. Mavis dodged another attack, not bothering to finish him off.

"You got spirit," she commented, "what's your name?"

"The name's Nihil," the man spat, "you're stronger than the average opponent...what's your name?". "The name's Mavis," said Mavis, "Mavis Dracula, to be exact. Just stop trying, honestly." Mavis dodged another attack from Nihil. Mavis grabbed Nihil on his next attack, and threw him against the wall, where he fell, gasping for breath.

"I _will_ defeat you!" he growled, "I _have_ to grow stronger…". Mavis felt a pang of pity shoot through her. This guy was like every other warrior she met. Searching for immeasurable strength. Then there was herself, a person who didn't really want strength, but somehow ended up obtaining it.

Nihil shot at Mavis yet again, and this time, Mavis dodged the attack rather than blocking it. Nihil flew over Mavis's head and slammed into the wall, where he fell again. Mavis grabbed Nihil with her telekinesis, freezing him, "Listen," she said sternly, "just because I admire your persistence, I'll let you live. Screw off."

Nihil got back up, "I come from the best known warrior village of the age," he said, "my profession is fighting. I've led my village through countless battles, and in each one, there's a champion. One who decides to face me. I've never lost a battle. When it comes to fighting, I'm a perfectionist. So prepare to lose."

Mavis sighed. Before Nihil could even launch himself at Mavis, Mavis had him in a telekinetic grip. She slammed Nihil against the ground multiple times, then threw him against the side of his ship. "You can train and train and train all you want," said Mavis, "but what gives you true strength is experience. You've been through battles. I would expect more of you."

Nihil hissed, "Don't tell me how to grow stronger!" he yelled. He vanished, this time going over Mavis's head, and bringing his leg down on top of her head in a kick. Mavis vanished at the last second, dodging the attack and landing far away from the area Nihil just demolished.

"You're hopeless." Mavis threw Nihil back, "your kicks are slow. You don't pay attention to your footwork. Your reaction time is slow and weak. You will not be able to defeat me if you keep up your current status quo of slow attacks. Focus on making them quicker, and you might be able to land a hit."

Nihil glared at Mavis, "You…" he winced. Mavis felt another pang of guilt run through her. She decided to end the battle, right there. She froze Nihil, forcing him through his ship doors, then grabbed his ship telekinetically, forcing it out of the station, and throwing it into warp.

Mavis turned back, running over to the control center, where Fubuki and Kolt were. The first thing Mavis did was make sure that Johnny was okay. She felt his life force, weak but growing stronger by the minute. Mavis quickly motioned to Fubuki and Kolt, "Come on," she said, "we should leave this place as soon as possible, before the Nameless Discipline find out we're here."

Kolt and Fubuki both nodded. Techno grabbed Johnny's body, and the five of them ran out into the hangar bays. Mavis chose smallest ship in the hangar bays, a tiny corvette that was probably used as a medical ship. It had two guns and barely any shields, but was probably the fastest ship in the hangars, according to Techno's scans.

Mavis ran into it first, followed by Fubuki and Kolt, Techno coming in last with Johnny. Mavis quickly ran over to the cockpit, and activated the engines. Soon enough, they were out of the outpost. "Kolt, set coordinates for the seer's star system." said Mavis, "Techno, you can have control of the ship mid-warp."

"Okay." said Techno, sounding surprisingly happy.

Soon enough, they were flying towards the seer's star system. Mavis could only hope that this time, they would not get distracted by the authorities.

* * *

400 years after going through the black hole…

Cedron was the King of the Corian Empire. He had gotten to that position from his raw power and unstoppable strength. All of his foes were killed with a single, fatal blow. Not a single one survived. Now, he was leading an army of over 47 decillion soldiers, conquering the universe. Cedron should've been happy. He had accomplished everything he's dreamed of by now. He's taken over multiple galaxies, had unlimited power, and was rich beyond measure. His soldiers were loyal to him and only him. His army was unrivaled in firepower and strength. But something was still bothering him.

Mavis Dracula.

Whenever Cedron thought of her, his eyes glowed with fury. His blood boiled. His hands clenched, and unclenched. Mavis Dracula. The one person who has ever defeated him. How had she defeated him? He had Vordania's blessing. It was impossible. And yet, it still happened. Cedron spent weeks and weeks, searching for a way to return to the universe he originally came from.

He needed to construct a fleet that could fly through a black hole. It might've been a ridiculous idea, but it was also a necessity. Cedron _had_ to defeat Mavis. No matter what cost he had to pay. He came to this universe through a black hole. He would return to his original universe with one as well. It was the only way.

Which is why Cedron was here. His advisors had told him that they had made a breakthrough in technology. In front of him, far away from any other celestial object, was the largest ship he's ever seen. It was about fourteen times the size of the largest sun in his original universe, and boasted millions of guns. Its hangar bays could store millions of ships and fighters. But its biggest asset was its armor. Made of Itrium, a very rare material that could only be formed in a laboratory, the ship could easily pass through black holes without any external or internal damage.

Cedron smiled icily. This was the key to returning. This was the key to defeating Mavis Dracula.


	94. The Seer

The ship came out of warp on time. Techno had alerted Mavis, Fubuki, and Kolt that they would be arriving, and they were all gathered in the cockpit of the ship, watching the glass windows. In the corner, Johnny was still sleeping, his chest rising and falling peacefully. Outside, they were right in front of a solid black planet. Even though the sun was shining on it, a raw sheet of black was covering the entire planet.

"Why's it so...dark?" asked Mavis, leaning forward a little in curiosity, "have you ever been here, Kolt?"

Kolt shook his head, "Nah," he murmured, "I've never been here. I've only heard stories about it. People say that those who come here are either insane or desperate for answers. Both are equally bad if you ask me. Anyways, this area is one of the four negation zones."

"Negation Zones?" Fubuki glanced at Kolt a little, "what does that mean?" she asked, "like...people don't come here or something? I mean, since the seer lives here, I would expect alot of people to try to find her for help or advice."

"Negation Zone means that this star system is neutral, and its heavily suggested that nobody comes here," said Kolt, "that's why you don't see any ships around here. Even smugglers and bounty hunters stray clear of this place. The seer has a large sphere of influence, as you can see."

"Yeah, well," Mavis hefted her shoulders a little, "we're here to end her sphere of influence. Techno, bring us down, onto the surface of the planet. Choose an area that's far away from any sort of village or town, and have our sensors search for any life forms, if possible.

"Our sensors appear to be being jammed by something," said Techno, "it's as if there's some sort of jamming frequency that clogging all of our devices. We won't have scanners or maps to help us on this planet.". Mavis growled. No maps. No scanners. Just great.

As the ship flew down below the cloudline, Mavis saw the landscape. She then realized that the giant sheet of black was actually a massive treeline. Huge trees, some of them a few miles tall, stood embedded into the ground, covering the entire planet. The sky was reddish-brown, and the clouds were murky.

Techno maneuvered the ship below the treeline, where Mavis saw the weirdest landscape ever. Red dirt, combined with strange orange-colored orbs covered the ground. The entire place was lit up by thousands of these orbs, which covered everything around them in a warm orange hue. Techno picked a decent spot to land: A small patch of red dirt in the middle of the trees.

As the ship landed, Mavis was the first one to walk outside. The smell of dirt and earth filled her nostrils immediately, making her temporarily gag. Everything underneath the trees were bathed in a orangish-red hue, making everything seem darker than what it actually was.

Fubuki and Kolt came out behind Mavis. They both looked alert and frightened as they looked around the landing zone. So far, Mavis saw no life forms with her extrasensory perception apart from the trees and weird orbs. Nothing but dirt and plants. Mavis cursed. She probably should've thought up of a plan to find the seer before coming down here.

Mavis suddenly felt something. She turned around, in time to see a woman walk out from behind a tree. She was wearing a reddish-brown dress, and had a sword slung across her back. That was weird. She wasn't armed with an energy sword, just with an old-fashioned metal one. Or Mavis thought.

But the next thing Mavis noticed was even weirder. Kolt and Fubuki, who were staring directly at it, didn't seem to see it at all. The woman pointed at Mavis, and gestured for her to follow. Her eyes were startlingly orange. Almost scary. Mavis turned around to point out the woman to Fubuki and Kolt, but then realized that they were completely frozen.

Mavis growled at the woman. Who was she? She wasn't the seer, that was for sure. Probably one of the witches that lived around her, and protected her. But right now, she had no choice. Even Techno was frozen. She was the only one who wasn't affected by whatever the witch was doing to her friends.

Mavis followed the woman, who turned and began to walk through the woods, towards a random direction that wasn't marked by trails or signs. Mavis looked behind her, to see that Fubuki, Kolt, Techno, Johnny, and the entire ship had vanished. Everywhere Mavis looked, everything looked the same. This was a great place to get lost in.

As Mavis followed the woman deeper into the forest, she realized that the woman was slightly transparent. Kind of like the Jial, from Vordania, except more transparent, and not as flickery. Eventually, Mavis began to hear, with her extrasensory perception, the sound of drums and high-pitched singing.

Ahead of her, the ramparts of a fortress slowly began to creep into view from the forest. It looked like an old-fashioned fort, with towers and woman patrolling them. The woman in the fort looked drastically different from the woman leading Mavis. They wore tight-fitting black armor, and carried around solid-black swords. The woman who was leading Mavis turned back to her. And vanished.

"What?" Mavis looked, but the woman was gone. In front of her, alarm bells began ringing, as the woman who were on the ramparts saw Mavis. Great. That woman was leading her right into a trap the whole time. Was she even real? What was happening?

Mavis easily dodged an arrow that came flying at her. Dozens of more arrows came from the towers, each one deflected just as easily. Mavis ducked, as one arrow went right above her head, slamming into a tree and exploding.

The front gates opened, as a dozen more woman ran out. Mavis watched them nervously. So this planet had only females? That seemed kinda sexist. Whatever. They were probably just witches. One of the witches ran forward, bringing her blade down on Mavis's head, but Mavis easily intercepted the witch's arm, and threw her back.

"What is this?" Mavis heard one of the witches asked, "a foreigner? We were not informed of your arrival….that can only mean one thing...those who are not invited, die. We, the Nightwings, will kill you, foreigner!"

Mavis didn't need to hear any more speech. She snapped her fingers, killing all of the witches with her telekinesis. As she did this, she saw several of the other witches who did not come out from the village whispering to each other behind the walls with her extrasensory perception. They certainly weren't used to strength at her caliber.

Mavis easily jumped, landing hard in the village. She stood up, grabbing one of the witches by the neck, "Tell me where the seer is." she hissed at her, "if you don't tell me, I'll kill you. And I'll make it painful. More painful then you can ever imagine."

The witch struggled, but didn't say anything. Around Mavis, the other witches were encircling her, but seemed hesitant to attack. These witches seemed loyal to each other. They weren't willing to fight if Mavis was willing to use live shields.

"Alright, you made the choice." hissed Mavis. Slowly, the witch's feet began to crumble away into dust. She screamed, as her legs came next, slowly disintegrating. Her clothing became withered and smoking, and soon enough also disintegrated. Within a few seconds, the witch Mavis was just holding was nothing more than a pile of sand on the ground.

Before the other witches could even react, Mavis had grabbed another one. "You're next," she growled, "tell me where the seer is, or you'll suffer the same pain and agony that she did. I'll make it slower as well. Just for you.". As she said this, her grip tightened, causing the witch's face to grow white.

"She's….in….the caves…." gasped the witch, "she's….in the….caves….". The witch slumped over, dead.

"SISTER!" Mavis heard a voice scream with fury. Next thing she knew, one of the witches had hit her in the back of the neck with her sword. But rather than Mavis's head getting chopped off, it was the sword that got snapped in half. The witch who just attacked Mavis was staring at her own broken sword.

"How did you…" the witch was about to say something else, before Mavis released a telekinetic shockwave that flattened the entire village. Entire buildings, farms, the warehouse, were all flattened. Everyone in Mavis's proximity was killed instantly. Mavis herself levitated a few meters off the ground, her eyes scanning the landscape for caves.

The witch had said caves. She finally found it. A small cluster of caves on the side of a hill, about a mile from where Mavis was. She was going to fly over to it, when she felt an arrow hit her shoulder. Mavis looked down, to see one of the witches still standing, with another arrow notched in her bow.

"COWARD!" she screamed up at her. Before she could even contemplate shooting the arrow, Mavis had flown down to her, and broke her bow. The witch yelled, and punched Mavis in the chest. Mavis didn't even feel it. She intercepted the witch's next attack, flipping her over with ease, and slamming her onto the ground.

Mavis pulled back her arm, when she saw the witch's face. She was young, probably not even 18 years old yet. Her bright blue eyes stared defiantly into Mavis's eyes. "What're you waiting for?" spat the witch, "kill me, like how you killed my family and my friends. You coward.".

Mavis was so startled by this comment, that the witch was able to land a hit on her face. Mavis stumbled back a little, not from the strike, but from the witch's comment. _Kill me, like how you killed my family and friends_. The witch didn't seem to be happy about being ignored.

"You aren't even sorry for it!" she screamed at Mavis, "you think you're doing something heroic! Why does everyone always pester us? Just because the seer is one of our kind doesn't mean that you have to always come barging in like this! You know _nothing_ of hardship! You know _nothing_ of loss!"

Before the girl could even say anything else, however, Mavis had grabbed her telekinetically, "Don't you _ever_ say," hissed Mavis, "that I don't know what loss is.". Mavis threw the witch straight at the rampart walls, smashing her through it and sending her flying into the woods. Mavis didn't know if she killed the girl. She hope she did.

Mavis turned back to the caves, rising slowly, and rocketing off towards them. The hill that the caves were located on were covered by trees, just like the rest of the landscape. But as far as Mavis has seen, it was the only hill on the planet so far. As Mavis landed in front of the cave entrance, the first thing she felt was the cold. It was _cold_. Even for Mavis.

Mavis poked her head through the cave entrance, where she saw a deep crimson rug that was laid on the ground. In the corner, a small rocking chair sat. There was a table on the other side of the cave, along with a small bed. Apart from that, there wasn't much in the cave.

Mavis slowly walked in, her hands glowing in case of attack. The air smelled of mud and dirt. As Mavis made one full circle around the caves, observing everything she saw, she heard a familiar voice behind her say, "Ah...there you are."

Mavis spun around, and saw the seer, standing at the cave entrance. How she got there without Mavis's extrasensory perception picking her up, Mavis didn't know. She looked drastically different from her witches. Rather than human-looking, the seer had tentacles coming from its face, and had multiple eyes, each one glowing a different color.

"Why don't you sit down?" asked the seer. She walked mildly across the room, pushing over a seat. Mavis didn't sit. She watched the seer carefully, "You're the seer?" she asked, "the one who's been appearing in my dreams? The one who said that I would die?"

"That is correct." said the seer, "and you are Mavis Dracula. You've killed my guardians and destroyed their homes and families. Just like how I predicted. Now, we can finally talk openly about our intentions. Sit."

Mavis didn't sit. The seer sighed, and waved her hands. Immediately, Mavis felt an external force shove her into the seat. Mavis blinked. The seer's telekinesis was strong. Very strong. Maybe even stronger than Cedron's.

"I want to know where my ship is, and where my friends are." said Mavis, "that's the first order of business.". The seer watched Mavis silently for a second, then waved her hands dismissively, "your friends are okay," she said, "how they were frozen, I honestly don't know. But point is, they are quite safe."

Mavis knew that she probably shouldn't trust the seer, but her extrasensory perception didn't pick up a lie. "Okay…" she murmured, "then what about the prophecy that you said about me? The one about me dying? Reverse it."

The seer laughed at Mavis, "I will not reverse it," she said, "why would I ever reverse it? You've damaged enough lives, and killed enough innocent people to be kept alive. You are a threat to the very fabric of the continuum of space-time."

Mavis stood up, breaking the telekinetic grip that was holding her there. The seer sighed, as Mavis walked over to her, "Reverse it," growled Mavis, "or I'll kill you. Like how I killed your little servants, and burned down your pathetic village."

"You amuse me…" murmured the seer, "clearly, you do not know how my prophecies work...I do not make predictions, Mavis. I create the future. I've already created your's. You will just...die. There is nothing you can do to stop it. Killing me won't stop it. Me reversing what I did won't stop it. It is happening right now. You _are_ dying."

It was then when Mavis noticed something. Her image was...flickering. She looked down at herself. Her body was glowing with a dark aura. "What do you mean?" she hissed, "how do you create the future? What's happening to me?"

"You foolish little girl," the seer cackled, "you see, I don't necessarily _create_ the future, I just incorporate a new one. I take a fragment of an alternate universe, and I incorporate it into this one. I took an alternate universe that you died in, and I combined it with this universe. As we speak right now, you are slowly dying. You essence will eventually completely...vanish. You will be gone."

It was definitely happening now. Mavis's body was flickering.

"Do you know why people don't come to this planet?" asked the seer, "it's simple. It's because this planet is the only one that contains a phytriian core. The myths that you heard, about people straying away from this planet because of me, are false. If it was just me, then plenty of people would come onto this planet. There's nothing to fear from me. But the phytriian core...it's what makes me stronger. I used to have been an ordinary seer. People called me a fraud, a fake. But then I came to this planet...the Phyttrian Core on this planet empowers me. The core is a literal culmination of every alternate reality possible. As long as I live here, then I can draw on its infinite power, and exploit its infinite possibilities."

Mavis's image completely vanished temporarily, then came back into view.

The seer smiled. "Goodbye, Mavis Dracula."


	95. A Shattered Reality

Mavis's image completely went out of view, then came back. She stepped back, staring at her own image. "What's happening?" she growled, "why am I vanishing? Is this part of the prophecy that you told me?". The seer simply laughed at her, not even bothering to look up at her.

"Right now, the Phyttrian Core is incorporating an alternate reality, in which you don't exist, into this reality," said the seer jovially, "in a few minutes, an hour at most, you will have completely vanished. Do not worry. It is _completely_ painless. Unlike you, I don't enjoy the suffering of my victims."

Mavis was now feeling it. A sort of pressure that was being applied to her. It slowly built, but Mavis resisted it. It was as if the air itself was pushing down on Mavis. Slowly, she began to see strange illusions, shards and fragments of alternate realities. She saw Fubuki turn evil. She saw Kolt kill Johnny. The images swirled around her, causing Mavis to grip her tightly.

"Enough." Mavis swiped her hands, and the fragments all shattered, dissolving into particles of light and energy. Immediately, her image returned to normal. She began to stop flickering, and wasn't transparent anymore. The seer looked surprised, but not alarmed. "Interesting," she said, "out of all my victims, only you have been able to disrupt the time continuum. But no matter. It will simply continue on you, and you will simply grow weaker and weaker."

Mavis was already feeling it again. Once again, her body grew transparent. She began to flicker. She growled. "You're persistent." she commented, "I just need to hold this out long enough until I find a way to stop your stupid Phyttrian core. There has to be a weakness to it. Everything does."

"There is no weakness to it," said the seer, "how do you fight the future, Mavis? How do you prevent your fate? You don't. It is fixed. It is rigid. It does not move or bend for its subjects. You are just one of its many subjects. And you will suffer the consequences for it."

"Everything has a weakness." said Mavis, "even the future. And I will find it.". She swiped her hands yet again, shattering the fragments of time and space that were slowly enclosing her. She winced, as this actually required a little energy. "Your time continuum is strong," she commented, "luckily, it's not strong enough."

The seer growled, "You are a powerful individual, Mavis," she said softly, "perhaps it was a mistake, giving you the prophecy. Perhaps I should have given it to someone else. No matter. You will die just the same, either out of tiredness, or from me."

Before Mavis could ask what the seer meant, the seer stood up, and released a telekinetic wave so strong, it knocked Mavis straight out of the cave, smashing her through a dozen walls and through the other side of the village. Mavis got up, clearing the time continuum again. At the cave, Mavis saw the small figure of the seer, now standing.

"You may be able to fight the continuum. You may be able to fight me. But you can't fight both of us at once!" yelled the seer. She sounded slightly hysterical, lunging at Mavis. Mavis dodged her attack, yelling as she blasted the seer back with telekinesis. The seer, however, had vanished, and was now behind her.

"What the-"

Mavis was struck in the back with a telekinetic wave that sent her flying through a tree. "You are no match for my telekinetic powers!" yelled the seer, "even without them, I would still win in a fight. My ties to the Phyttrian Core of this planet allow me to manipulate the fabric of spacetime itself!"

Mavis looked up, in time to see a dozen seers, all of them circling her. The ground beneath her feet began to slowly dissolve away. The trees grew shorter, turning into….soldiers. Soldiers who charged at Mavis. Mavis blasted them all back easily, killing them with one blow. The seer laughed at Mavis, "Look at you!" she screamed, "so weak, so powerless. Bound by the laws of reality!"

Mavis cleared the time continuum again, and was blasted back. This time, she slammed into a wall of glass, shattering it. As the glass shattered, however, the fragments of glass turned into armed grenades right before they hit Mavis. There was a massive explosion, as a huge fireball engulfed the area Mavis was in.

Mavis stood right back up, when she noticed something. The ground was...dissolving. Right underneath Mavis, the ground dissolved, sending Mavis falling down through what looked like the atmosphere of another planet. Mavis concentrated. _This isn't real_.

Mavis yelled, rocketing herself upwards, towards the ground, that was still dissolving above her, and slammed her fist into it with as much force as possible. Instantly, there was a loud shattering noise, as Mavis and the seer were both brought back to the planet, which now looked normal again.

As Mavis was clearing the time continuum, she heard the seer hiss at her. "Insolence…" growled the seer, "you are truly worth the effort, Mavis Dracula. You will eventually tire out, no worries. My prophecy will see to that."

Mavis growled. How could she defeat the seer? She _did_ control reality...and Mavis was slowly losing energy. This was probably the one challenging fight she's had since a long time ago. As Mavis was thinking, she felt the seer's telekinesis grab her and throw her. Mavis was smashed right through the hills that the seer lived in, crashing into the earth again. Mavis quickly got back up, jumping out of the way right as the area she was in got pulverized by another telekinetic attack.

Mavis turned around right in time to see a dozen trees uproot themselves, and stomp towards her. Mavis easily punched through each one, killing each tree, before the leaves on the ground began to swirl upwards, blinding her vision. As the leaves were flying around, Mavis was struck by one of the trees, flying back 20 feet and landing on the ground again.

Mavis yelled, disintegrating all the leaves, and pummeling through the trees. Right before she destroyed the last tree, however, the tree turned from wood to glass, and when Mavis shattered the glass, the fragments turned into missiles, which once again collided with Mavis. The explosion of the missiles were also decently warm. Warmer than what Mavis was used to. According to her extrasensory perception, it was around 900,000,000 C.

Mavis looked up, using her telekinesis to throw the seer back against a tree. Right before the seer collided with the tree, however, the tree completely vanished, and was replaced by a cushion. "Defeating me is impossible!" she yelled. Mavis growled. She cleared the time continuum again. There _had_ to be a weakness.

Mavis was struck by another telekinetic wave, flying into the ground. Before the seer could do anything else, however, Mavis yelled, breaking the fragments of reality, and forcing the seer to use her telekinesis defensively, as Mavis lunged at her. Right as Mavis was pulling her arm back, however, the seer vanished, reappearing behind her.

"Ever heard of instantaneous teleportation?" asked the seer, "my powers the time continuum allow me to use it! Your speed cannot match with mine, nor can your petty strength. I _gave_ you this strength. I know your upper limit. You are _nothing_."

The area around Mavis's feet began to crack, as something ran through it. Next thing Mavis knew, she was frozen in a block of graphene. Without even trying, she shattered the block, sprinting straight at the seer, but was blasted back yet again. Mavis spat out some blood. Was this the one opponent Mavis would die to? It seemed quite likely. The ability to manipulate reality was pretty good.

"Just stop trying." said the seer, but even she was showing signs of tiredness from throwing her telekinesis at Mavis, "your strength will never match up to mine!" Mavis ducked as a telekinetic wave slammed into the area where her face just was. She sprinted around the forest, completely vanishing, but right before her fist hit the area the seer was in, the seer vanished.

"Ugh…." Mavis stopped running for a second. She was actually out of breath, for the first time in about a month. She had never been this tired ever since she fought Tiberius. The seer reappeared behind Mavis, slamming her right through another tree.

"Your fight is a lost cause, Mavis," said the seer, "I've forseen all of this. I know what you will do next. I know what you think. I know what you will attempt. The power of Phyttrian Core empowers me. You are nothing compared to its infinite power.

Mavis stared, right as another shockwave sent her flying into the ground. That was it. That was the key to defeating the seer. Mavis cleared the time continuum yet again, turning towards the seer, "If you really know what I think, then you would know what I'm about to do." she said, sneering, "try and stop me."

The seer hesitated. It was the first time Mavis saw her hesitate. But even so, she saw a flash of fear cross her face, which was quickly replaced by another smirk. "You think you can destroy the Phyttrian Core?" the seer laughed, "you are as impudent as ever, Mavis Dracula. Perhaps you need a reality check. The core is at the _center_ of the planet. I don't think that even your strength could get you there."

Mavis grinned, "We'll see about that." she said.

Before the seer could do anything else, Mavis yelled, rocketing off towards the sky. She turned sharply in midair, and rocketed back towards the ground, bringing her fist down towards the red earth. When she collided, Mavis didn't stop. She continued, going deeper and deeper into the ground, accelerating to several hundred miles per hour.

As Mavis drilled deeper and deeper, she began to notice something. There was no rock. It was all just dirt. More red dirt. She passed through dozens of root systems, miles of earth and pebbles, even a few skeletons. As she dug deeper, gravity began to feel weird around where Mavis was. She felt as if gravity was pulling up on her, rather than down at one point.

Mavis's eyes glowed. Her extrasensory perception kicked in, and she detected a concentration of energy about twenty miles underneath her. By now, she had been cutting through the ground for at least a few minutes. The seer was probably far above her, thinking that she was dead.

Mavis finally cut through one last layer of dirt, and saw in front of her….glass. Mavis stopped herself before she hit it, staring. Was this the core? The glass swirled with strange images. Mavis saw herself, in the reflection of the glass, along with her friends, and Johnny. Apart from that, she heard strange voices coming from it. The temperature was around 900 C. Pressure was about 2000x stronger than normal air pressure, and there was an extreme lack of oxygen.

This was not a place Mavis could stay in for a long time. Already, her image was becoming transparent. She didn't have any time to destroy the core. She had to do it now. Without hesitation, Mavis drew back her fist, and punched the core, as hard as she could.

A rush of color...a huge explosion...a sharp flash of light that temporarily blinded Mavis….and everything went black.

* * *

Fubuki had absolutely no idea what happened. One moment, she was sitting on the surface of the seer's planet, and in the next second, she was back on the ship, floating in the middle of space. Next to her, Techno was in sleep mode, and Kolt was also asleep on the ground. Fubuki frowned. What had happened?

Leaning down, Fubuki grabbed Techno and reactivated him. He immediately woke up, looking around, "What happened?" he asked quickly, "I thought we were on the planet. Where are we now? Did one of you guys deactivate me before entering into the planet's atmosphere or something?"

"I don't know." said Fubuki, "but the point is, I just woke up in here, and I have no idea how I got here. Last thing I remember, I was on the surface of the seer's planet. Where's Mavis? Is she in here?"

"I don't think so," said Techno, "but according to my data logs...we have just been subject to instantaneous teleportation. We jumped from the seer's planet to here in an infinitesimally small amount of time. Our current coordinates are 39847, 739485, 39204. We're out of the galaxy."

"What?" Fubuki sat up, "What do you mean, we're out of the galaxy?". "What I mean," Techno cleared his throat, which Fubuki thought was impossible, him being a robot, "is that something happened on the seer's planet, that caused us to go through instantaneous teleportation. The teleportation seemed to have been random, so now we're stuck in the middle of dead space."

"Dead space?" Fubuki's eyes widened a little, "What does that mean?" she asked.

"It means that we're out of the galaxy, and that we're not within a fixed cluster of star systems or planets. We're quite literally in an empty void right now. Of course, there are celestial bodies that surround us, it's just that they're much farther away."

Fubuki sat down. "Well…." Fubuki looked around herself, at the black void that surrounded the ship, "that sucks."


	96. Biological Warfare

Mavis's eyes slowly opened. She was drifting. Rocks and pebbles surrounded her. Shards of ice and chunks of burnt earth circled her, most of it slowly dissolving. Mavis knew she was in space She could feel the emptiness that only space could offer. She didn't hear anything, and her extrasensory perception was telling her that she was indeed in a vacuum.

Mavis probably should've opened her eyes there. Her instincts were shooting danger signals all over her body, making her tense. But at the same time, she was so _tired_. She felt as if all the energy had been sapped from her body in one, fatal sweep. What had happened, anyways? Mavis tried to remember. At the current moment, she was too preoccupied with trying to rest.

She had demolished the Phyttrian Core. That was just about the last thing she remembered. Johnny and Fubuki and Kolt and everyone else...she didn't know what happened. Did she kill the seer? Mavis certainly hoped so. Maybe she was dead. Maybe this was what death felt like.

But she wasn't dead. Mavis's eyes slowly opened. As she had suspected, she was in space. In front of her was a ball of color and light. As her eyes adjusted, she realized that it wasn't actually a ball of light, but a planet. The seer's planet. Mavis's eyes readjusted again, focusing in on the planet. An entire chunk of it was entirely blown off, massive chunks of rock and dirt floating in space. Literally half the planet was gone. The other half was still intact, but there were massive cracks running through it, and as Mavis watched, yet another chunk of it broke off, flying out into space.

Mavis slowly tried to make herself move, and quickly regretted it. A course of pain shot through her body, forcing her to go limp again. Whatever she did, it had drained her out completely. She didn't mean to destroy the planet, she only meant to kill the seer. Hopefully that had happened.

Mavis lay there, for hours. Days probably passed by. She didn't feel hungry or thirsty, or even scared. She was mainly worried about Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt, but knew that they were alive. She could still sense Johnny's life force, somewhere in the universe. As she floated there, only opening her eyes from time to time, she eventually sensed something large warping into the star system.

Four massive warships, different from the design of the Nameless Discipline, were in the star system. They must've been from a different faction, because they had an orbular design rather than a sharp, dagger-like design, and boasted many more guns. They circled the planet, and soon enough, Mavis began to feel herself get trapped in a capture beam, and slowly being sucked into one of the warships. She didn't try to resist. She was too tired to do that.

What happened next was like a blur. She was handcuffed, forced into a cell, probably belowdecks. Her vision was too blurry for her to focus on any of her captor's faces. She didn't even try to escape. As soon as she entered her cell, she quickly fell asleep, right on the floor, not even bothering to climb onto the cot that was in the corner of the cell.

As Mavis woke up again, she noticed that there was a tray of grimy-looking food sitting on the ground right in front of where the door was. She quickly sat up, wincing a little from the effort, and telekinetically grabbed the food, bringing it back to herself. Her strength was returning. She was actually able to use her powers now, but still felt as if her innards were made of lead.

"Ugh…" Mavis swallowed the nasty food. It was more of a brownish-green sludge, that tasted like clam. Under normal circumstances, Mavis liked clam, but the fact that it was made of sludge made eating it much harder. After swallowing another mouthful of it, Mavis was interrupted by a loud knocking on the door. An angry voice yelled through, "Prisoner 1148, stand facing the back wall with your hands above your head!"

Mavis sighed. This wasn't going to end well for anyone. She did as she was told, climbing up and facing the wall, placing her hands behind her head. On the other end of the door, there was the sound of locks and gears turning, and the door swung open. On the other side was a long-necked orbular-eyed alien that watched Mavis. His voice was surprisingly deep. On either side of him were guards that flanked him protectively.

Mavis still faced the wall. Her extrasensory perception was watching the aliens, but the aliens didn't know that. One of them walked over to Mavis, putting handcuffs back onto her, and forcing her out of the cell. The other guard grabbed her arms and forced them behind her back. Mavis was led through dozens of hallways, until she finally entered into a room that looked like a conference hall. There was a large, oval table that had chairs circling it. On each chair, sat an alien of the same species. Each one eyed Mavis wearily.

As the aliens were watching Mavis, Mavis was marched up to a podium, where she was tied down at a chair that was on the podium. The guards left, and the long-necked alien retreated into the last empty seat in the room. There was silence at first, which was broken by the alien at the front, "So this is the girl who is responsible for the destruction of Maltach?"

"Yes," said another alien, "the planet was destroyed, and she was the only life form that was still alive when we scoured the ruins. She is able to survive in space, and regulate her vitals and regulatory systems in it. Apart from that, she's shown incredible endurance regarding starvation and thirst."

"So tell us…" the same alien leaned forward, his orbular eyes staring right into Mavis's, "what species are you? We do not have your DNA in our records….we must have it. Your endurance and strength can prove...useful to us."

"I'm a damn vampire," spat Mavis, "what species are _you_?"

The reaction was quickly seen. Several of the aliens hissed back at her. They didn't seem to appreciate crude language. But even so, the lead alien answered Mavis in a relatively respectful manner, "We are the Cyrdians, vampire….we are the creators of a perfect future…so tell us, vampire...how did you destroy the sacred planet of Maltach?"

"Well…" Mavis's eyes glowed with defiance, "your _sacred planet_ housed one particular person that I don't quite appreciate...people call her the seer. I killed her, and destroyed the Phyttrian Core. That way, nobody will be able to tamper with the future like how that witch did. Nobody would be able to control the fates of others anymore."

Her response quickly drew angry and vandalised looks from everyone. "This girl is a heretic!" yelled one of the Cyrdians, "she must be killed, and immediately! The Phyttrian Core is of utmost importance for the great destruction. It is imperative!"

"Patience, brother," another, calmer-looking Cyrdians, "Vampire...where did you acquire enough strength to destroy an entire planet by yourself? What sort of weapon or technology did you use, and where did you acquire it? Did you buy this technology, or did you steal it or create it by yourself? Did you act alone, or did you have accomplices?"

"I didn't use a weapon to destroy the planet, I destroyed it myself," said Mavis, "I got the strength from...experience."

"Clearly the girl is lying," said the lead Cyrdian, "no training could ever elevate anyone to a level of planet-destroying strength. That is impossible. Tell us the truth, girl, or we'll be forced to use torture in order to extract information from you. And neither or us want that, do we?"

"Well there is an easy way to find out." said one of the Cyrdians, "we should bring her to the training room, where we can test her true strength and abilities. Let's see how she does against some of our engineered masterpieces." at that last word, he grinned a little, revealing a row of sharp teeth.

"Yes, that's the only way." said the lead Cyrdian, "guards, if you may…"

Mavis was soon forced up, and was blindfolded. She used her extrasensory perception to sense where she was going now, and quickly noticed that the guards were now leading her into a relatively large, white room. All around her, the walls were blank and the tiles were cold. The guards took off the blindfold and walked through the back door, which quickly closed and locked.

 _Welcome to the training room_ , said a voice through an intercom, _we'll be...testing your strength here, vampire._

Mavis cursed. She was still quite weak. Her shoulders were sore, and she had a slight cramp on her leg. If she was going to be defeated at any moment, now was about the time. But she had to try. Johnny was still out there. She had to return to him.

On the other side of the training room, a panel opened up on the ground, revealing a rhino-like thing beneath it. The rhino had a sharp, red-edged horn, and it seemed to have scales rather than skin. It roared, showing a row of razor-sharp teeth, and spouted steam from its nostrils. Without even waiting for a cue, the Rhino charged.

And died.

Moving so fast that the Cyrdian's tracking equipment lost track of Mavis temporarily, Mavis had grabbed the rhino by a leg, and disintegrated it into dust by sapping its life force. Something felt wrong about the Rhino's life force. It wasn't as….natural as a normal one.

As Mavis stood back up, the Cyrdians began to clamor amongst each other, "How is she so strong?" "That was our strongest Rhino AX species!" "We have to extract her genetics...it is imperative for our development!"

All around Mavis, more strange creatures began to emerge from the ground. A strange, mantis-like creature came at Mavis, bringing a razor-sharp blade swinging down at her neck, which Mavis easily dodged, and blasted the mantis's head open. Behind her, a swarm of genetically-engineered bees emerged, flying at Mavis in huge droves, but Mavis simply yelled, and killed each bee with her telekinesis.

More came at her. A lion, a cyborg monkey, a huge eagle that spat flames. Everything that was thrown at Mavis, Mavis threw away easily. But at the same time, Mavis began to feel herself regaining strength. She frowned temporarily. Why was she growing stronger? Shouldn't she be tiring, with all this fighting?

Apparently not. As another massive lion charged at Mavis, she vanished, blasting the organs straight out of the lion's body. Before the Cyrdians could throw any more at her, she had jumped up, and punched the ground with all the force she could spare. There was a massive gust of wind that flew in all directions, as the entire training room literally cracked in half.

"This one's too strong!" yelled one Cyrdian, "we must kill her, now! She's not worth the effort!". "Quiet, fool." the lead Cyrdian quickly silenced him "Activate emergency stunners. Capture this vampire. We'll extract her DNA, and kill her. She's been more than enough trouble already."

All around Mavis, the walls began to glow yellow. Walls of electricity flew at her from all sides, but they easily passed through her, not even affecting her. They tickled a little. One of them felt a little like getting shocked after going down a particularly staticy slide. It was mostly useless though, and Mavis quickly shrugged it off. She looked around. There were no more monsters coming after her.

On the intercom, a panicked-sounding voice came through

 _Vampire! Surrender now or we'll be-we'll be forced to detain you!_

Mavis, with her extrasensory perception, quickly located the intercom, and tracked its wires, right back to a room that was hidden behind the walls in the training room. It was about fifteen feet of solid Graphene. Should be easy either way.

Mavis jumped, accelerating to Mach 72,000 in one second, and brought her fist down hard on the walls in front of the place where the intercom wires were leading to. There was a massive explosion, as Mavis jumped into a wreckage of a room.

All around the place, decimated control panels, wires, and fires were reigning. Cyrdians were running around in a panic. Several of them were trying to escape through the doors, which Mavis welded shut telekinetically. She also closed and locked the escape hatches from the outside, trapping the entire Cyrdian group in that one room. It was silent.

"Listen," growled Mavis, "I want to know how the hell to get out of this ship. Anyone who tries to resist gets killed."

To prove her point, Mavis snapped the neck of one of the Cyrdians, causing the other ones to back up in surprise. Most of them looked terrified. Mavis grabbed another one by the neck, "TELL ME!" she yelled, "how do I get out of this place?"

The Cyrdian who Mavis was holding in a grip was trying to say something, but Mavis was choking him too hard. She released him a tiny bit, allowing him to speak.

"It's...it's through that door...take your second right….then take your third left...go down four flights of stairs, and you'll be at the hangar." said the Cyrdian, still clutching his neck, "please just let me live." he pleaded.

Mavis threw the Cyrdian to the other side of the room, knocking him unconscious. She stormed over to the door which she had welded shut, and punched it open. Behind it, was a hallway of red alarm lights and sirens that were wailing.

Mavis ran straight down the hallway, not wanting to waste any more time dealing with aliens. She needed to find Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt. Now.

* * *

 _Mantis XAIV_

 _Biologically engineered, 30 feet tall, able to run at Mach 42,000. Breaths fire that can go up to 100 million C. Antigravity, super strength, flight, and extreme speed all attributes as well. Able to summon infinite copies of itself. Defeated by Vampire (1)_

 _Tethapede XAIV_

 _Biologically engineered, 320 feet long, able to run at Mach 49,000. Literally indestructible, immune to pretty much everything, including disease, acidity, pressure, vacuums, and biological warfare. Known for trampling through 900 feet of solid Graphene. Defeated by Vampire (1)_

 _Rhino XAIV_

 _Biologically engineered, 9 feet tall, able to run at Mach 71,000. Indestructible, able to run through any amount of graphene, and is known for also having a Red Crystallite Horn capable of cutting through any material its been tested on. Defeated by Vampire (1)_

 _Akros CCIV_

 _Biologically engineered, 80-feet tall, able to crush any material its been tested on, and strong enough to resist 800,000 psi. Known for destroying a continent with its hyperdrill, a laser weapon installed on its arm. Defeated by Vampire (1)_


	97. The Dyson Sphere

Mavis sprinted down the hallway, sliding into the hangar. Inside, dozens of ships of unfamiliar design were sitting, docked inside the hangar. There were some aliens that meandered here and there, but Mavis ignored them. Sprinting over to a one-man fighter, Mavis ripped the cockpit open and jumped in. Behind her, alarms began blaring. A few aliens ran out of the hallway she had just came out of, armed with guns.

Mavis cursed. The Cyrdians seemed to have organized to resist her escape faster than she had anticipated. Turning back to the control of her fighter, Mavis flipped some switches and pushed a few buttons, starting up the engines, her extrasensory perception guiding her on how to activate the fighter. Soon enough, she was hovering a few feet above the hangar grounds.

"Stop!" Laser bolts began to fly in the direction of the fighter. On the displays, Mavis saw that the shields were at 92% and dropping. She was mildly impressed. She didn't know that these fighters had shields. That probably meant that the Cyrdians were relatively wealthy, as well as being crazy.

Mavis guided the fighter to face the enemy Cyrdian soldiers. Without hesitation, Mavis opened fire, launching dozens of laser bolts straight at the enemy lines, shredding them to pieces. Right as she was done with this, however, she quickly spotted yet another squadron of soldiers moving in to intercept her. Mavis gritted her teeth. She couldn't sit here and fight these guys forever.

Making a hard right turn, Mavis zipped out of the hangar bay shields, before the soldiers could even open fire. She quickly passed through the outer shields as well, a dim humming noise marking her exit. Behind her, Mavis sensed the ship's gun batteries swivel up and aim at her. Massive artillery shells flew at her, but Mavis's reaction times carried the throttle. She bailed left, avoiding two shells, then banked right, avoiding the rest of the explosions.

It was then when Mavis noticed something. She was in a fighter. Fighters couldn't warp. She cursed, her eyes quickly going back and scanning the area behind her. Wherever they were, it wasn't in the seer's system. They must've warped out of that system, and had gone to another one.

Mavis quickly swiveled around. If she couldn't warp out, then there wasn't a point in running. She would have to go and take refuge in one of the planets, or somewhere where she could find a ship that could warp. Mavis began to push some buttons, and felt the engine begin humming. She diverted all power from shields to forward thrusters, and zipped straight at the enemy warships.

The ships fired, right at point-blank range. None of them hit. Mavis's reaction time was too fast. She flew through the hellstorm of explosions that now filled the area around her, zipping straight through the heat and flame, flying straight towards the planet in front of her. Behind her, Mavis's extrasensory perception quickly informed her that there was an ion torpedo on her tail.

As she whizzed towards the planet, the fighter's sensors began to beep. Mavis looked up, right as two more warships came out from the other side of the planet. Mavis cursed. So the warship had some other friends to back it up. As Mavis approached the warship, the ion torpedo that was behind her slowly began to gain speed, closing in on the fighter.

The enemy warships began to fire, launching shells at Mavis that caused the area around her fighter to become a firestorm of red and orange. Mavis tried to maneuver through the firestorm, but this time, it wasn't a matter of how good of a reaction time you had. There was literally a wall of shells heading straight for her.

Mavis tilted her fighter, so it flew between the cracks of two of the shells. Even so, one of them grazed the side of her fighter, disabling one of her guns and scraping off some armor. Behind Mavis, the ion torpedo flew through the wall of shells, following her. Mavis cursed. How good was this thing at following its targets? Apparently very good.

Mavis avoided more explosions, as she grew closer and closer to the blockade that was sealing her from the planet. She had an idea on how to get rid of the torpedo, but it was risky, and may not even work. As Mavis drew nearer to the warships, the anti-fighter point defense guns began to fire, sending lasers and flak flying up at Mavis, who easily avoided most of it.

Mavis flew straight for the bridge of one of the enemy warships. Behind her, the torpedo gained speed, not stopping at all. Right as Mavis was right in front of the bridge, she banked hard right, causing her fighter's engine to make a weird squelching noise with the sudden turn, but at the same time, running the torpedo right into the enemy bridge.

There was a massive explosion, as the ion torpedo collided with the bridge. As Mavis looked behind her, the bridge had been completely blown out from the torpedo. Several officers and probably the captain had already been sucked out into space, slowly suffocating.

But the warship's guns were still firing. As more explosions covered the area Mavis was in, she began to doubt her ability to punch through the blockade.

It was then when Mavis noticed a few things. The first thing she noticed was that she didn't need to use a fighter in order to get to the planet. The second thing she noticed was the four warships that had just warped into the system, and were joining the blockade. The third things she noticed was that it was really….dim.

Mavis looked around. Where was the sun? She literally couldn't see a sun. Her extrasensory tunneled her vision, bringing her several miles out, where she saw….a dark orb. A dark metal orb. What the hell? Was this the sun? Mavis was jarred back to reality as another shell came very close to hitting her fighter.

Mavis immediately pressed the ejection button, shooting herself out of the fighter. She ripped herself out of her own seat, redirecting herself and hurtling towards the "sun", or whatever it was. Getting through the warship blockade was too much work for Mavis. She didn't want to make the effort for it.

As she approached the orb of dark metal that the planets were orbiting, she immediately noticed docking stations, hangar bays, and warships surrounding it. Behind her, the flak and point-defense lasers had stopped firing. The warships must've lost Mavis by now.

Mavis finally reached the orb. She saw no light emanating from it at all, and it was huge. Larger then what a sun should be. As she flew towards one of the hangar bays, she noticed that the warships didn't seem to see her. She was either too small or dressed in too dark of clothing for them to notice anyways.

Mavis flew into one of the hangars, dropping down next to a few dozen fighters that were docked there. All around her, aliens of all species were working. Some of them even looked humanoid, and all of them were wearing a dark brown uniform with a twisted U on it. That must've been the symbol of the Cyrdians.

Mavis briskly walked down the hangars, keeping her head low. Surprisingly, no one even bothered to stop her. They were all too busy with their work. Some of them eyed her weirdly though. One alien called out to her, "Oi! You better get a work uniform, or they'll whoop yer ass!"

Mavis didn't take kindly to insults. And she really wasn't in the mood of letting anyone to get away with anything. So she killed the person who said that, telekinetically choking him after he was out of sight of everyone else. She needed to blow off some steam anyways.

As she passed through the hangar bay doors, she noticed electronic signs that were lining the walls. She briefly glanced at one of them, reading what was on the sign, and immediately understood the meaning of the metal orb.

 _Current Solar Output: 634 yottawatts per second_

Mavis stared. So this was the purpose of the orb. In the middle of it, it must've been sapping the energy of a sun, using it to power the rest of the solar system. The Cyrdian Empire seemed to be a _very_ wealthy empire. She was, however, interrupted by a man who came walking down the hallway, rubbing his head and speaking to himself. Mavis immediately had an idea.

As the man approached her, she walked up to him, "Sir! Sir!" before he could even reply, she punched him hard in the gut, causing him to squeal and go down. A few minutes later, Mavis was dressed in the dark-brown outfit that the rest of the workers on board were wearing. She looked pretty bad in it, but it was a necessary loss. The last thing she wanted to happen was for someone to recognize her.

Mavis turned and briskly walked down the aisle, following the signs that led her to the "solar viewing platform". It definitely was a long way off. She walked at least a mile before she was able to enter the viewing platform. Inside, there was a large, floor-to ceiling glass window that allowed viewers to see the sun.

Mavis stared. It was probably the most gargantuan construct she's ever seen. The entire orb, on the inside, was covered with a bluish-grey material must've been modern solar panels. Surrounding the sun, some of them alarmingly close actually, were maintenance ships. Most of them were working on aligning solar panels, or getting replacements for them.

It was then when the alarms began blaring. Above Mavis, alarm lights began flashing red, startling her and a few other workers nearby. A voice came through the intercom. It was harsh, and sounded like everything Mavis disliked: Bossy, idiotic, and egotistical.

 _All workers, go to Conference Room A7. All workers, go to conference Room A7._

Crap. Mavis briskly walked out of the viewing station. Already, droves of workers were making their way across the hallway. Behind Mavis, the group of workers who were in the viewing station quickly joined them. Mavis sighed. She really hated large crowds, but at this point, she really didn't have a choice. She joined in with the stream of workers, following them to the conference room.

The "conference room", as the person on the intercom said, was more like an auditorium. There was a podium at the front, with seats surrounding it. The workers each took a seat, Mavis included. She sat next to two other workers, both of whom looked attentive and alert. Mavis quickly stared at the ground. She didn't want anyone to question her right now.

There was immediately silence, as a grubby-looking, slightly fat man walked up onto the podium. He looked quite human, until Mavis noticed the three orange eyes on his face. The fat alien straightened up on the podium, then began to speak. His voice was gravelly, and kind of hard to follow, but Mavis's extrasensory perception kept up with it.

"Loyal workers of the Cyrdian Empire," the alien began, "I have come to inform you of a telegram we have just received from the border protection fleet, regarding the safety of this Dyson Sphere. We have just been informed that there is a heavily-convicted terrorist inside this very facility. It is a female, with black hair and blue eyes. She looks like this."

Mavis quickly averted her eyes towards the ground as a photo of her showed up on the main screen in the auditorium. Mavis heard, with her extrasensory perception, people whispering and talking in hushed voices. Apparently, she had already gained some fame within the Cyrdian Empire for what she's done in the Nameless Discipline.

"This terrorist is convicted of mass genocide, murder, assassination, extreme property damage, vehicle theft, weaponry theft, the taking of hostages, piracy, and assisting in the destruction of Maltach." said the three-eyed alien in the front. Immediately, there was an outburst of talking. Mavis looked around, as the workers on either side of her began to speak with the people around them. She caught some snippets of speech with her hypersensitive ears.

"You think she's really on this Dyson Sphere?'

"She must be….but even I'm scared...if she's been able to avoid the authorities for as long as I've heard, then there's no telling what she'll be able to do here."

The alien at the podium cleared his throat again, silencing everyone else, "Point is," he said, "we must all stay vigilant for this dangerous terrorist. Anyone who knows the whereabouts, or anything about her should step forward immediately. Our guards are working on finding the terrorist as we speak."

After nobody stepped up, the alien sighed, "very well then," he said, "well...because the terrorist _is_ on this Dyson Sphere, it is only reasonable to immediately go back to your sleeping quarters. All duties will be given to the labor droids. With the terrorist on the loose, we can't let you guys get in her way. That's what our guards are for."

The alien clapped his hands, and the lights turned back on. Immediately, the workers stood up, heading over to the doors, and exiting. Mavis followed, but on the inside, she knew that she would have to inevitably fight her way out. In the sleeping quarters, the people around her would probably immediately recognize her as an outsider, and point her out to the authorities.

Mavis silently walked down the hall, following a group of workers closely, but not speaking. She still felt Johnny's life force, somewhere out there in the universe. She had to survive. For his sake.


	98. Undercover

Mavis followed a group of workers back to their sleeping quarters, silently killing one of the female ones and dragging her body off, and taking her place. When they walked into their sleeping quarters, the first thing Mavis noticed was the beds. They were catacomb-like holes in the wall, with beds inside of the holes. Each worker clambered into one of them, taking out books or small touchscreen computers that they fiddled with.

As Mavis slid into the one unoccupied bed, she quickly noticed the inside of the hole where her bed was located. There were magazines stashed in the very back. As Mavis grabbed one of them, she saw the title, which was labeled as, " _The Cyrdian Weekly_ ". On the front was an image of a massive fleet of warships, docked in front of a planet, and the subtitle for that one was, " _The battle for Uri-28 successful!"_

Mavis frowned. She began to flip through the pages, seeing what the magazine had. There were accounts of battles that the Cyrdians were waging against the Nameless Discipline, along with articles boasting about the military strength of Cyrdia. In the "news" section, Mavis saw her own face plastered over the article, with the words, " _Terrorist on the loose!"_ plastered over the front of it.

Mavis threw the magazine into the shredder that was located in the right hand corner of the room. Right as she did that, one of the other workers resting on the beds looked up at her, "Oi! Don't use the shredder, we only get two uses a day, remember!". Mavis immediately tensed up, scared that the worker would recognize her, but quickly changed her demeanor after that, "Sorry." she mumbled, sliding back into her bed.

The same person watched Mavis carefully as she went back to her resting area. After satisfying himself for something, he also slid back into his sleeping hole, pulling out a magazine and reading it. Mavis saw, with her extrasensory perception, that that very person was reading the article that was talking about her.

"Sorry about that," Mavis looked down, to see that someone had slid open a hatch on the side of her wall, "that's Krayt. He's always in a doom and gloom attitude, don't take it personally.". The person who was talking to Mavis was young, probably less than 18 years old, but his eyes were sharp and brown.

"It's fine," said Mavis, pulling a sheet over herself, "I was just transferred here today," she lied, hoping that the boy wouldn't pick it up, "from the...er...Bhutanoic system.". Her improvised naming impressed even herself. The boy, however, bought it easily.

"Ah, okay." he said, "My name is Bob, by the way. Bob Tanaka". Mavis blinked. Bob was such a generic name, she hadn't thought of the possibility of her meeting someone who was named that. "Oh…" she reached out and shook his hand, "my name is Mavis. Nice meeting you."

It was then when Mavis saw it. A flash of what looked like...uncertainty in the boy's eyes. Had he recognized her? Mavis really hoped not. But the uncertainty was quickly replaced with a toothy grin again, "That's a cool name," he said, "anyways, I just wanted to...er... _properly_ welcome you to the Dyson Sphere."

Mavis smirked, "Thanks," she said, "what do you do around here?" she asked, trying to fill up time with pointless questions, "I mean, you look like someone who hasn't been here too long, you're pretty young.". The boy grinned at her, "Yeah," he said, "everyone tells me that I'm too young. Point is, I volunteered to work here. It's to help the war effort, you know?"

Mavis nodded slowly, playing along, "Yeah," she said, "I'm not too familiar with the war though." she added lamely.

"You don't?" Bob looked surprised, "whatever. Point is, the Nameless Discipline declared war against the Cyrdian Empire over the Axial Parallel. It's a chain of star systems that separate the center of the galaxy from the rest of the galaxy. The Cyrdians have traditionally had control over it, but the Nameless Discipline wants it now. They want to build some sort of superstructure around the supermassive black hole, to somehow use its power."

Mavis was going to respond, when she suddenly heard the intercom come back online, _Attention all loyal workers of the Cyrdian Empire, starting from now, a curfew will be enforced starting from Seven Zero Zero. The Cyrdian 19th fleet has been stationed outside for your own safety. Remember, if you know the whereabouts of the terrorist, please contact the control center immediately._

Bob looked up as well, "Damn," he muttered, "whoever that terrorist is, the government really wants her dead, eh?".

Mavis nodded, "Yeah." she said softly. Just then, a convoy of soldiers came into the room, knocking on the open door to tell everyone that they were entering. "Curfew is being enforced starting from now!" yelled one of the soldiers, "no coming out of this room from now on! Anyone who does so will be subject to a month in prison!"

After the soldiers left the room, Mavis heard some people outside of her sleeping hole get out of their beds and walk around. There was talking, as some of the workers began to play cards, gamble, and tell stories. Mavis heard Bob sigh, "there they go," he said, "the workers are always rowdier at night. It's almost impossible to sleep with them going off all the time."

Sure enough, outside, someone yelled something, and there was the sound of glass shattering. Bob sighed again, "Goodnight." he mumbled, closing the hatch that separated Mavis's cell from Bob's cell. Soon enough, Mavis could hear bob snoring with her extrasensory perception. She also fell back onto her bed, sealing her sleeping hole off from the rest of the room, and locking it. She quickly fell asleep a few minutes later.

* * *

Mavis woke up to the sounds of scuffling outside her bed. There was yelling, as the sound of someone beating someone else with something resonated through the sleeping quarters. Mavis opened her eyes, groaning and rolling over. She was actually having a decent rest until that happened.

Mavis opened the hatch to her bed, just in time to see one worker beat the crap out of another one with a baseball bat. A group of workers were sitting in the corner, laughing as well. They were all drunk, clearly. On the ground, the beat-up worker had a bloody nose, and was barely conscious, but the worker with the bat continued pounding him with the bat, causing him to spit out blood.

"Oi!" Mavis raised her voice a little, "shut up! I'm trying to sleep here."

Immediately, the entire room grew silent. The workers all stared at Mavis, some of them eyeing her wearily. "And what makes you think that we'll listen?" said the worker with the bat, "why the hell should I listen to some piss-ant like you? Eh?"

Mavis growled, "I'm trying to sleep here," she said, glaring at the worker, "so can you just shut your idiotic face up for three seconds to let me do that?". Her response gave her exactly what she wanted. The worker sent a punch flying right at Mavis, but Mavis easily dodged it, purposely going slow to not reveal her strength.

"Heh," the worker glared at her, "you're quick.". He came at Mavis again, this time bring his bat down on Mavis's head. Mavis vanished, reappearing behind the worker, and grabbing his arm, twisting it back hard. Immediately, the worker gasped, trying to escape Mavis's grasp. Mavis felt two other workers come at her from behind, and released the worker with the bat, making his two friends punch him on accident.

"Oops." Mavis grinned as she looked back at the worker with the bat. " _That_ was an accident.". By now, the entire sleeping quarter was awake. Most of the workers, including Bob, was watching Mavis with large eyes. Across from her, Mavis saw the worker with the bat stand back up. Behind him, a dozen other workers assembled. They really did want to fight.

She feigned tiredness, leaning over a little, "you guys want to fight?" she asked, "bring it on!". The entire mob came at Mavis, and almost instantly, it was a one-side slaughter. The viewers' eyes couldn't even keep up with what was happening. One second, the line of workers were approaching Mavis, and the next second, those same workers were flying up, down, left, right, smashing into the ground, the ceiling, and the walls. Mavis had purposely saved her energy so she wouldn't completely vanish, since that would be a little fishy, but she easily went at Mach 0.5 against the workers.

As Mavis punched another worker against the face, she turned around, right as another worker swung a punch at her. Instinctively, she stepped back, intercepting the punch and sending that worker flying away, but at the same time, her extrasensory shot a warning signal up her spine. She felt something...danger...behind her.

Mavis ducked right as one of the bystanders tried to stab her with a knife. She did not expect the watchers to also go against her. The worker with the knife ran over to Mavis, yelling, "You...you're...you're-"

Mavis knew what he was going to say. Yelling, she blasted the worker back telekinetically, sending him crashing into the wall, and sliding down onto the ground, dead. Mavis stood there, her eyes wide. That worker had recognized her. He was about to call Mavis out for it, but Mavis had finished him off right in time.

The reaction from the other workers, however, was immediate. They stared at Mavis. Mavis had to do something, quick. Without hesitation, she waved her hands, "Nothing happened." she said. Immediately, all the workers' faces relaxed a little. They began to go back to their usual business, most of them absentmindedly heading back into their beds.

But one person was still watching Mavis. Bob. His eyes were narrowed, and Mavis noticed this immediately. To avoid any more attention, she quickly retreated back into her bed. Next to her bed, Mavis heard Bob also entering into his sleeping chamber. Mavis frowned. Was she overanalyzing? Her mind wipes had never failed her before. Bob couldn't have remembered anything. And anyways, Bob was probably the only person Mavis legitimately had any respect for in the Dyson Sphere. The last thing she wanted to do was kill him as well.

The next day, as Mavis was climbing out of her sleeping chamber, she saw Bob sitting on the other end of the room, reading a magazine. He quickly saw her, and waved, but otherwise didn't say anything. Mavis frowned. Was that good or bad?

Soon enough, they were herded down to the engine rooms, where they were supposed to clean the engines. To stay hidden, Mavis played along, cleaning the engines, which was surprisingly easy, especially if you had telekinesis. Purely because of Mavis's "ingenious engine-cleaning skills", the entire group got an early breakfast, which was located in the canteen.

As Mavis got her food, she slid down next to Bob, "Hey." she said uncertainly. She still wasn't sure if Bob was mind-wiped, or if he had somehow remembered what had happened last night. Sure enough, he looked up, and saw her. Immediately, his eyes grew wide for a second. Mavis sensed fear in him. But it only lasted a second. Soon enough, he was back in his calm demeanor.

"Oh, hi." he said uncharacteristically.

As the two of them ate their breakfast, Mavis quickly took note of the way Bob seemed to be acting casual on purpose. He kept glancing from side to side, before quickly averting his gaze to his food again. He looked as if he was ready to run on a moment's notice, as if he was a criminal of some kind.

As Mavis was about to swallow another gulp of the stuff these workers called "food", she sensed Bob leaning over with her extrasensory perception, "What are you?" he asked.

Mavis sat up immediately, almost spitting the sludge out. Bob immediately made a hushing sign, as some workers gave them funny looks, "Shhh," he whispered desperately, "do you _want_ us to get arrested? Shut up!"

Mavis swallowed her food, "How...how did you get through my mind wipe?" she hissed at him, "it's never failed me before."

Bob shrugged, "I don't know," he said, "point is, you're the terrorist that the Cyrdian Empire's looking for, aren't you?"

Mavis looked around, but nobody was watching them. She should kill Bob. Right now, right here, and make a run for it. It was the most rational line of thought. But at the same time, she didn't want to kill Bob. He was a good person.

"I'm not a terrorist," she hissed back, "I'm just trying to survive, dangit."

"Listen," said Bob, "I'm on your side. I can help you."

Mavis didn't even know what Bob was talking about. Literally yesterday, he was telling Mavis of how he volunteered to join the Dyson Sphere engineering division. Didn't sound like something a terrorist aid would do. But even so, it made Mavis hesitate. The prospect of an ally seemed too alluring to her.

It was then when the alarms began blaring. Both Mavis and Bob looked up in surprise. On the intercom, a voice came on.

 _Warning: Another terrorist separate from the one we are searching for has entered the Dyson Sphere. The individual is six foot three inches, wears a cape and mask, and carries an energy blade as a weapon._

Mavis growled. Great timing. Bob glanced at Mavis, "Who's that?" he asked in a hushed tone, "is that one of your friends? Do you guys have an escape plan?"

"No," hissed Mavis, "he's a rival. This isn't your battle. Go and hide."


	99. A Delicate Plan

Mavis stood up, right as there was an explosion outside. She saw a dozen soldiers run through the hallway, firing their weapons, then an unseen force blasting them backwards. Nihil jumped into the room, throwing explosives into the canteen. Mavis formed a protective barrier around herself and Nihil right as he did that, protecting herself. Everyone else in the room was dead though.

"There you are!" Nihil grinned, "I've been looking for you, Mavis!". He ran forward, activating his energy blade and jumping up. Mavis easily dodged his attack, blocking the next one telekinetically, then blasting him back completely with her telekinesis. Nihil scrambled back up, growling. Blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth.

"I've trained more since we last met," he grinned, "I _will_ defeat you this time!". He vanished, completely disappearing this time. Mavis also vanished, her reaction time guiding her. Mavis and Nihil clashed around the room, causing explosions to happen out of nowhere for the normal viewer. They were moving too fast for the eye to see.

Even so, it was still very easy for Mavis. She was hoping for more of a challenge from Nihil. He kind of reminded Mavis of what Fubuki was like when she first met her. Searching for strength, and searching for power. It made her not want to kill Nihil. She could easily kill him. A single blow that she put any effort into would probably kill Nihil.

But Mavis wanted to have some fun with him. She accelerated to 2c, going faster than light, spinning around Nihil so fast that he lost track of her, and stumbled out of supersonic speeds, crashing into a table and sending wood and plates flying everywhere.

By now, there were at least two platoons of soldiers standing in the canteen, with their weapons at the ready. As soon as Nihil landed on the grund, they charged forward, grabbing him, and trying to force handcuffs on him. Nihil vanished yet again, killing several of the soldiers, before re-engaging Mavis in battle.

Mavis easily dodged Nihil's attack, and decided to finish Nihil off. She didn't want to kill him, so instead of doing that, she kicked Nihil, with a mediocre amount of force, causing him to slam into the opposite wall so hard that it caused cracks to appear. Nihil slid down, unconscious, and Mavis saw several soldiers rush in and grab him, snapping on handcuffs.

Mavis landed on the ground right in front of the enemy platoons, and right as she did, she unleashed a telekinetic shockwave that blasted the line of soldiers back, probably killing a few of them. She flew out of the canteen, going into the hallway, where she heard alarm bells going off. On the intercom, someone was ordering the soldiers to go to the canteen.

Mavis made a turn, and realized she was standing face-to-face with a platoon leader. Behind the platoon leader, a dozen other soldiers armed with energy weapons pointed their guns at Mavis. The leader yelled, "Surrender, terrorist!".

Mavis didn't need to hear or see anymore. She vanished, not even bothering to kill the platoon of soldiers, running too fast for the eye to see. She had to get off the Dyson Sphere. This place wasn't going to serve as a refuge for her any longer. Mavis slid into the hangar, right as she noticed the soldiers and the tanks that were waiting for her.

These weren't regular soldiers either. They stood at nine feet tall, clad in what looked like painfully-thick armor. Mavis's extrasensory perception told her that the helmet of the soldiers also came with a display screen that tracked its enemies, and each one held a massive gun, that had a barrel of at least three inches.

As soon as the soldiers saw her, they began to fire their weapons, some of them charging forward. The guns weren't much of a gun, more like a small missile launcher. Mavis dodged all of them, vanishing, then reappearing behind one of the soldiers, grabbing it and throwing him out of the hangar shields, before any of the other ones could react, she had blasted them all back with telekinesis.

As Mavis landed back on the ground, she saw several of the soldiers get back up, arming their weapons. One of them drew a sword, and charged at Mavis. Mavis easily dodged the attack, then grabbed the sword, ripping it out of the soldier's hands, and stabbing him through the chest with it. Right as Mavis pulled the sword back out, one of the enemy soldiers hit her with its gun.

Instantly, a 5-inch diameter hole appeared in Mavis's chest, but it was quickly healed. Mavis turned around. She didn't like these soldiers. They were actually kind of tough. She clenched her fists, and concentrated. Slowly, around the room, there was the sound of grinding metal, as the soldiers' armor was slowly crushed. Eventually, all of the soldiers were lying dead on the ground, crushed to death by their own armor.

Mavis turned around, then noticed the tanks. They had never fired during the entire battle, but now that the soldiers were dead, they were charging forward, firing their guns as well. Mavis drew back her fist, punching the lead tank, sending it flying back. She then completely vanished. Tanks began to randomly explode around the room, some of them flying up into the air, and some of them vanishing, then reappearing out of the hangar shields.

It was only after Mavis destroyed her fifteenth tank that she noticed the dozens of more tanks that she had to blow up. There were at least a hundred. She cursed. This would take too long. She _could_ go through the tanks one by one, destroying each one, but that would be cumbersome and boring. There had to be some other way….

Right as Mavis was thinking of just directly escaping the hangar bays by flying out, several layers of doors closed in, shutting space off from the Dyson Sphere. Mavis cursed. Her only escape route out of the sphere was gone now. Mavis turned sharply, hurtling back down the hangar, passing the tanks, and flew back through the doors that she entered into the hangar bays from. She could punch the doors and try to break them open, but that would cause decompression to happen, which would probably kill everyone in the sphere. As much as Mavis would want to escape, she wasn't going to kill thousands of innocent lives just to do that.

Mavis flew down, through the hallway, turning into a bat, and flying into a corner, where she hid from the soldiers that were now storming through the hallway, yelling orders. On the intercom, a voice came through, yelling orders for soldiers to immediately be redirected to the hangar bays and the outer hallways. A second intercom message informed everyone that the control center, viewing platform, and stabilizers were being locked off.

Mavis, after a while, came out of her hiding place, flying up to the ceiling as a bat, letting another squad of soldiers file past underneath her. She needed to open the doors that were separating the hangar bays from space. That way, she would be able to escape the Dyson Sphere without hurting anyone else.

Mavis rematerialized into a vampire, running down the hallway, her extrasensory perception guiding her to the control center. As she turned a corner, she found herself face-to-face with one of the 9-foot tall soldiers in heavy armor. As soon as he saw Mavis, the soldier roared, pulling out an energy sword, before he was crushed by Mavis's telekinesis.

"Look!" Mavis turned around, right as she saw a dozen regular soldiers line up and start firing their guns. Mavis dodged most of the bullets easily, grabbing the soldiers' weapons telekinetically and twisting them to bent pieces of metal. Before the soldiers could even contemplate escaping, Mavis had killed them all. She continued running down the hallway, reaching the control center within 30 seconds with her superhuman speed, and ripping open the locked doors.

Behind the doors, Mavis saw officers working over computers, pointing and stuff on screens, and talking to each other urgently. As soon as they saw Mavis, one of the officers grabbed a gun, but before he could fire it, Mavis had ripped it out of his hands. She accidently ripped it out so hard that the officer broke his fingers as well, but that was besides the point.

Mavis stormed over to the controls, throwing back one of the officers, slamming him against the wall, and setting the rest of them to sleep with her mind wipe powers. Mavis looked over the controls, reading the labels that were on the buttons and knobs that covered the wall in front of her. On the screens, Mavis saw a platoon of soldiers standing at the ready in pretty much every hangar. Mavis finally found the button labeled "Hangar Doors". It was switched off. Mavis turned it on.

Immediately, through the computer screens, Mavis saw the hangar doors slowly begin to grind open. The soldiers in the hangar bays were looking at the doors, a confused look on their face. Some of them looked a little tense. But Mavis knew that this was her chance to escape the Dyson Sphere.

Mavis turned, running out of the control center, and making a hard left turn. She sprinted back down the hallway again, this time flying into a different hangar. Not even bothering to let the soldiers have a chance, Mavis blasted them all back, straight out of the hangar shields. Mavis herself then jumped out, zipping straight out of the hangars, where she looked up and saw herself face to face with a fleet of warships.

Without hesitation, Mavis jumped to warp, cutting between two warships, and flying out of sight instantaneously.

* * *

Fubuki, Kolt, Johnny, and Techno had been in warp for two days by now. Techno was fueling the ship from the replication stone, using it to generate an infinite amount of warp fuel. According to the starmap, they weren't even 0.5% of the way back to the universe. They would have to stay in warp for another six months in order to get back to the Milky Way.

As Fubuki checked up on the controls for about the fiftieth time that day, she walked to the back, where she saw Kolt sitting, huddled up in the back corner of the ship. He looked kind of glum. Fubuki quickly walked over, sitting down next to him, and kissing him quickly, "You okay?" she asked, "you seem a little...pale."

Kolt flashed a grinned, but it was quickly replaced by his usual somber expression, "it's nothing," he assured Fubuki, "I mean...I don't know if we'll ever be able to return to the Milky Way ever again. There's literally no way back apart from warp, and that would take forever to complete anyways. Not to mention Johnny…"

Fubuki winced. Johnny was one of her many burdens in the past few days. At the current moment, he was sitting in one of the staterooms in the back of the ship, still unconscious. According to Techno, he was recovering steadily, but when he did recover, Fubuki better have a good explanation for where Mavis was.

"It'll be fine," said Fubuki, turning back to the window, "I've been through much worse. Anyways, at least now we have plenty of time to ourselves." she smiled a little at the end. Kolt grinned as well, leaning over for another kiss, "thanks," he muttered, "I never had any purpose in my life...until I met Mavis...and you."

There was silence for a little, as the only sound that was audible was the hum of the engines, before Fubuki stood back up, "I'm gonna go check on the engine room again," she said, "if it's good, then I'll come back. We still have a long way to go, according to what the starmap said about two minutes ago."

Kolt nodded, "Alright," he murmured, "I'll go and...uh...clean up the ship."

Fubuki nodded, and turned, walking back to the cockpit, where she saw Techno working over the controls, and using the replication stone to reduplicate the warp fuel again. Fubuki quickly walked over to the controls, turning to Techno, "How far away are we from the Milky Way?" she asked Techno, "did we make any progress?"

"Of course we made progress," said Techno, "to be exact, we've made 0.000098% progress since the last time you've checked, at least. We have approximately another six months to wait. There must be a faster way to reach the Milky Way…"

Fubuki glanced at Techno, "do you know of a faster way?" she asked, "I mean, if you do, then we should definitely try it. Anything is better than what we're doing right now. I'd rather die then get stuck in an eternal warp for the rest of my life. And anyways, we don't know if Mavis is still alive. The sooner we reach the Milky Way, the faster we'll find out."

Techno responded swiftly, "Yes," he said, "there is actually a way. However, it is extraordinarily risky, and involves a 48% chance of failure."

Fubuki leaned in, "And what is that?" she asked, "I'm no stranger to dangerous or suicidal plans, believe me. Remember, we've been back in time before. If we can survive that, we can survive anything."

"My plan is to utilize a nearby wormhole in order to return to the Milky Way instantly," said Techno, "however, if my calculations are off in any way or in any order, then we will certainly and instantaneously die. There will be no alternative."

Fubuki stared, "A wormhole?" she asked, "aren't those...like...sci-fi stuff?"

Techno sighed, "The usual misconception about wormholes. No, Fubuki. Wormholes are very real in this universe. According to my readings, I have detected a decently-sized wormhole that would bring us right to the edge of the Milky Way. However, if we are to take it, then we must proceed with caution."

Fubuki nodded slowly, "Alright…" she began, "how far away-"

Right as Fubuki was about to ask how far away the wormhole was, the door to the cockpit opened, and Johnny came in, yawning, startling both Fubuki and Techno. "Hey…" murmured Johnny sleepily, "I just got up...where's Mavis? I've been looking for her around the ship. And what happened?"

Fubuki hesitated for a moment. "Johnny…" Fubuki sighed, "we _really_ have to talk about some stuff."

* * *

 **Power Lvls**

 **Mavis Dracula Lvl [198]**

 **Techno Lvl [31]**

 **Fubuki Lvl [29]**

 **Johnny Lvl [27]**

 **Kolt Lvl [2]**

 **Nihil Lvl [29]**

 **Note: Today was a really busy day for me, which is why I couldn't get chapter 100 out. This coming week, I'll be back in the grind.**


	100. The Cyrdian Empire

Johnny listened in silence to what Fubuki had to say. "Um…." Fubuki cleared her throat, "Mavis...we...lost her on the seer's planet. I don't know what happened...one moment, we were on the planet's surface, and the next moment, we apparently went through instantaneous teleportation, and ended up here. I honestly don't know what happened to Mavis…"

Johnny was silent for a moment. Fubuki quickly took note of the way he was clenching his fists. "You…" Johnny's eyes glowed for a moment, startling Fubuki, "you let Mavis go to the planet? Alone? Why did you _do_ that? I thought you would accompany her...no matter what."

Fubuki shifted uncomfortably, "Johnny, I _wanted_ to, but Mavis wanted someone to stay back. You were still unconscious...and we didn't like the idea of leaving you alone on a planet full of witches and crap like that. We _had_ to stay behind, to protect you."

Johnny glared at the ground for a while. After a few seconds, Fubuki shifted uncomfortably, "Uh...Johnny?". Johnny stood up, turned around, and walked straight out of the cockpit, heading to the back of the ship. Fubuki heard the door of a stateroom slam shut in the back, and sighed. She stood up, brushing some dust off her shirt, and headed to the back of the ship herself, opening a stateroom, to see Johnny sitting on the bed, clutching his face in his hands.

"Johnny, you okay?" Fubuki walked over to him cautiously. Johnny looked up at her, and Fubuki was startled to see what she instantly recognized as desperation. She had seen that facial expression before. It was the same expression she saw on Mavis's face the first time she saw her.

Johnny was silent for a moment. "We have a plan, right?" he said. His voice was harsh, as if he was trying to hold back something. Fubuki decided not to push it. She responded immediately, "We have a plan...but it's dangerous. It involves something you guys call a wormhole...I've never heard of it though."

Johnny rubbed the back of his head tiredly. He didn't even seem jarred by the prospect of entering into something which he would probably die in. "If we need to go through a wormhole to reach Mavis, then we'll do it. But are you sure its a wormhole? I mean... I thought wormholes were only theoretical."

Fubuki paused. She didn't want to push it too hard for Johnny, "Well…" Fubuki sighed, "get some rest, Johnny, you'll really be needing it. I don't know how far away the wormhole is, but from what Techno sounded like, it's not far."

Johnny nodded, sighing. "Okay…" he muttered. He didn't sound like he wanted to rest. He had just come out of a deep sleep only a few minutes ago. But even so, he knew that arguing with Fubuki wasn't going to get him anywhere. Johnny already felt his hands start to warm up, as the magnetism within him began to cause tiny pieces of dust on the ground to whirl around a little.

Fubuki nodded, ignoring the dust that was starting to fly around beneath her, "Alright," she said nervously, "I'll go and...uh...check on the cockpit." with that, Fubuki silently drifted out of the room, telekinetically levitating herself a few feet over the ground.

* * *

Bob was _really_ tired of all the interviews he was getting. After worming his way through at least a dozen investigators, avoiding a court martial, and being demoted fourteen times to crew engineer, he was finally free of all the hubbub of activity that seemed to surround him at all times.

Everyone was now suspicious of him though. Bob _did_ have a reason to be on his guard at all times. Everyone thought that he was actually supporting Mavis, but had no proof for it whatsoever. So the only option they had was to let him go free, and keep a close eye on him. But Bob had an idea. He knew that Mavis was bound to appear somewhere else, and was probably going to gain intergalactic attention from that. He had to find some mode of transportation that would allow him to move quickly.

At the current moment, Bob was sitting in his old sleeping quarters, in one of the sleeping holes, and was staring at the wall of his sleeping area. As he thought, he tried to think up of a way of transportation, without having the authorities being able to stop him. He could steal a ship...but that would only lead to the warships that were orbiting the Dyson Sphere to intercept him. He could try disguising himself as a pilot...but he wasn't good at faking his identity, so that was probably a bad idea.

There _was_ a way, but it was incredibly risky. The next day, the Cyrdian Empire was going to install warp drives on the Dyson Sphere, making it able to transport itself. It was mainly meant to allow the Dyson Sphere to warp itself over to the Axial Parallel, and help the war effort, but if Bob could find a way to hijack the warp drives…

He was an engineer, after all. He could probably find a way to override the system controls and take manual control of the warp drive.

But that wasn't the only problem. In an effort to quicken the war against the Nameless Discipline, the Cyrdian Empire introduced new elite soldiers just the day before, and even Bob was impressed at them. They were going to be standing at eleven feet tall, with head-to-toe power armor, along with the Cyrdian Empire's newest weapons. If the rumors Bob heard were true, then the new elite soldiers would be able to turn the entire course of the war in favor of the Cyrdian Empire. But that also meant that Mavis would have more trouble fighting the Cyrdians.

Bob silently grabbed his diary, which was sitting in a concealed corner of his sleeping hole. He kept all of his most secret memories in here. And in it was the reason he was helping Mavis in the first place. Bob flipped to the first page, where he saw his scrawly handwriting filling the page, documenting the day the Cyrdian Empire came to enlist him into their army.

 _My name is Bob Tanaka. Owning this book is already very risky, but I'm willing to do anything to keep my past alive. I was just taken, less than twenty four hours ago, into a ship, forcibly enlisted by the Cyrdian Empire. My parents' names are Laura and Lyren. They were killing by a firing squad after refusing to hand me over. I hear rumors that I will be brought over to a military engineering academy. I don't want to work for the Cyrdian Empire, but I guess that I'll have to do so for now. Eventually, there will come a day when I'll see a chance for vengeance. When that day comes, I'll take that opportunity._

Bob's scrawly handwriting ended there. Bob set down the book, smiling to himself. It's been over twenty years since he's written that, but now, his chance had finally come. His chance to avenge his parents' deaths, and destroy the morale of the Cyrdian Empire. His chance to strike a blow against the organization he loathed so much.

Bob was startled as the intercoms suddenly turned on, blaring a loud voice through the walls that caused his skull to vibrate a little, "All workers, immediately report to assembly rooms 1A through 1D, at your respective rooms, please! All activities have been given a cold halt, report to Assembly Rooms immediately!"

Bob groaned, and opened his sleeping hatch, crawling out of his bed and throwing on some clothes. Nearby, some workers were already filing out of the room. Most of them threw some suspicious glances at him, but Bob ignored them. He would have to get used to being a suspected criminal.

As Bob made his way down the hallway, following a column of workers who were talking in hushed voices in front of him, Bob noticed that not only his work sector, but all other work sectors all seemed to have been summoned as well. In his hallway alone, there were already hundreds of workers making their way towards the assembly rooms.

A few minutes later, Bob and the rest of the workers in his sector made their way onto the Assembly platform. The assembly room was a large, circular dome-like structure. It was built mainly for military demonstrations and large meetings. Bob didn't know which one it would be today. At the other end of the room, he spotted a group of formally-dressed men talking to each other in hushed voices. Almost immediately, Bob recognized one of them as the director of the Dyson Sphere.

As more workers began to file in, the assembly room became more and more crowded, until there were at least 5,000 people in the room. After the doors finally closed, the ground beneath the workers' feet began to rise, until they were standing on massive bleachers that allowed them to see what was going on beneath them.

At the front of the assembly room, one of the formally-dressed Cyrdians walked up, holding a microphone. "Loyal workers and soldiers of the Cyrdian Empire," he began, "it is with great misfortune, and with great horror, that we announce to you, that the terrorist has escaped our clutches yet again."

There was a great deal of murmuring, as the workers glanced at each other, talking in hushed voices. Bob felt some of them shoot narrow glances at his back. He even caught his name amongst the whispering once or twice, but ignored it mostly. The speaker at the front didn't seemed fazed by the great deal of talking.

"We have decided," he continued, "that in order to ensure the safety and security of the Cyrdian Empires' Dyson Spheres, that we will be installing hyper light engines onto them, in order to allow us to move the Dyson Spheres completely. This will not only make it much harder to pinpoint the Dyson Sphere, it will allow us to provide fuel and energy to the Axial Parallel, which, as you all know very well, has been under threat by those insolent worms who call themselves the Nameless Discipline."

Bob waited, and so did everyone else in the room. Most of the workers in the assembly room already knew that the warp drives would be installed onto the Dyson Sphere. This assembly must've been for a much more important cause.

"In our next line of business, the Cyrdian Empire has also granted us with their most recent line of elite soldiers," said the man at the front, "the reason you are all here today, is to see a demonstration from one of our newer soldiers, to show you exactly how strong we really are."

Behind the man, a panel opened from the ground, and a massive, gargantuan soldier rose out of it. As it did, there was a great deal of talking and murmuring that spread across the room. The Cyrdian speaker raised his hands in a gesture of grandeur, "Behold, the next generation of the guardians of the Cyrdian Empire, the Elite Marines!"

There was much applause and whoops from around the room. Bob silently cursed. This couldn't be good. The soldier stood at fifteen feet tall, with head-to-toe armor. Machine guns, rocket launchers, mortars, and rocket boosters covered its entire body. The soldier turned to the crowd, and saluted, bringing its hands up to its forehead in a classical Cyrdian salute.

"This is the beginning of the turning point of the battle for the Axial Parallel!" said the man at the front charismatically, "Led by soldiers of this caliber, our brave men fighting on the galactic front will fear nobody! We will crush the Nameless Discipline, and spill their blood over the planets that they have worked so hard to capture!"

The applause was tremendous, and Bob couldn't blame them for it. The very sight of such a soldier was enough to stir up the patriotism of just about every worker in the Dyson Sphere. The man at the front held up his hands, and the entire assembly room fell silent at once. "Of course," he said, in a little of a more solemn voice, "the terrorist that has escaped us a few days ago...she is the only one who has been able to escape our clutches. It is imperative that we defeat her, and quickly. Because of this, she has been labeled enemy number one of the Cyrdian Empire. We will find her, we will kill her, and we will show the galaxy that we are not an organization to be scoffed at!"

There was great applause all around the room, several of the workers giving a standing ovation. Bob also clapped, in order to conceal his true thoughts. His mind was racing. He had to do something. These soldiers...they would probably become a challenge even for Mavis. He would have to find some way to warn her…

* * *

 _The Battle for the Axial Parallel,_

8.1929

The Battle for the Axial Parallel is an intergalactic conflict that was started by the Nameless Discipline, after it's leader, Cedron, made a direct move against intergalactic peace by moving one of his fleets into the Axial Parallel. In response to this, the Cyrdian Empire, who are the sovereigns that control the Axial Parallel, attempted to instigate peace talks with the Nameless Discipline, but failed to do so. The first official battle of the Axial Parallel began on 8.1921.29, when the Nameless Discipline captured the Lyruin System. In the following days, more battles have erupted around the Axial Parallel. So far, the Cyrdian Empire have lost four star systems, and are clinging on to twelve others. At the current moment, the star system of Iuria is under attack by the Nameless Discipline, who have deployed 14,000 warships against the defenses of the Cyrdian Empire, which consists of 10,000 warships. The battle appears to be in favor of the Nameless Discipline, who have managed to capture three of the nine planets within the star system, and are currently in battle around the planet of Verdun.

Intel Spy Report Drone B192839481


	101. Through the Wormhole

Mavis came out of hyperspace, flying right into an asteroid field. Mavis was barely even tired. She instantaneously ducked, avoiding an asteroid, reappearing behind another one, and smashing an asteroid that came out of nowhere at her. Even Mavis was impressed. Her reaction time was getting even better.

As Mavis settled down on the asteroid she was standing on, she began to take in her bearings. Her extrasensory perception told her that she was in a star system. She could feel the gravity, pulling in the asteroids, locking them in place around a celestial body a few light hours away. Mavis also sensed radio signals….alot of them. She appeared to be in a well-populated star system.

How could Mavis tell all of this? How could she simply know all of this? She wasn't moving, wasn't even trying. She was sitting in the middle of an asteroid field, perfectly silent. Any normal person would say that the place around Mavis was completely unoccupied. But Mavis knew better. She could sense...everything by now.

Mavis silently flew to the back of the asteroid she was standing on, staring out into the void of space. It was perfectly silent. So peaceful. The very sight of it made Mavis want to sleep right there, in the middle of space. But then she remembered Johnny, and Kolt, and Fubuki, and Techno.

And then she heard the thing behind her.

Mavis turned around, and saw a ship, its lights facing directly at her, blinding her vision. Mavis's extrasensory perception quickly told her that the mining vessel was from the Cyrdian Empire. Great. She was still in Cyrdian Territory, wasn't she? The mining vessel, however, seemed more interested in the fact that Mavis was alive in space. Mavis took this opportunity.

Without warning, Mavis phased through the armor plating of the mining vessel, going directly into it, startling the people in the cockpit. Mavis killed the guard that was standing in the back before he could even react, and grabbed the co-pilot, throwing him across the room. She turned to the pilot, grabbing him telekinetically in a choke.

"Start flying," growled Mavis, "go to the nearest populated planet. Now."

The pilot gasped, grasping his neck, but Mavis threw him back onto the seat, where he began to frantically flip switches and press buttons. Soon enough, the entire mining ship was flying through the asteroid field, dodging some rocks here or there. Mavis made the pilot's life easier by destroying asteroids telekinetically before they could even get close.

After a few minutes of flying, Mavis got bored, and decided to head to the back after disabling the communications channel and emergency communications channels. In the back, Mavis saw boxes and boxes, each filled to the brim with gold, silver, and platinum. It looked like something that could make a man rich.

Mavis walked back into the cockpit, remembering that the pilot was alone in there. He could do a number of things in an attempt to get rid of her. As Mavis entered, she saw the pilot, still flying the ship, but this time, as she entered, someone fired a gun, right into her skull. Instantly, the bullet wound healed, and Mavis turned around, where she saw a scared looking miner holding an energy pistol.

Mavis grabbed the miner, and telekinetically blasted him against the wall, killing him instantly. She then grabbed the pilot, and, after hearing him scream for about a millisecond, killed him as well. These types of people couldn't be trusted. She's seen enough of them. Walking over to the controls, Mavis sat down at the pilot's seat, and gained control of the mining ship.

As the time passed, Mavis slowly began to see the planet ahead of her. It had a few docking stations, and from what it looked like, also had a planetary shield. Mavis cursed. This wasn't good. She would have to somehow get through the planetary shield without the Cyrdian Empire noticing her.

As Mavis drew near, she opened her communications channel, and almost immediately heard a voice say to her through the channel, _Cyrdian Planetary Entry Check to Mining Vessel 312, please confirm entry code._

Mavis sighed. She pressed the unmute button, "Um….can you just let me through?"

It was the most hopeless thing in the world. But even so, Mavis's eyes glowed, as her mind control powers kicked in, flowing through the radio signals itself. On the other end, the voice seemed a little dazed, but responded after about thirty seconds of silence, _You...yeah, you can go through...thanks for the code…_

Mavis flew right through the planetary shields, going down towards the planet. As she grew closer to the ground, she quickly noticed how low the clouds were. They were literally hovering only a few feet above the ground, making visibility incredibly hard, but Mavis's extrasensory perception guided her to the landing zones, where she cut the engines over an open parking space, and landed the mining vessel.

By now, there were several officers on deck waiting for her. Mavis approached them, her shoulders tense. One of the officers walked up to her, "Have you been cleared for entry?" he asked, "we did not receive an external confirmation code from your ship.".

Mavis waved her hands, "I did." she said. Instantly, all of the officers' eyes glowed a little green, then dimmed out. They slowly began to walk in random directions, some of them heading back into the hangar bays that were on the other side of the platform. Mavis took this time to look around a little. The clouds made her use her extrasensory perception to see what was happening around her. Mavis appeared to be in some sort of public parkway, with fighters, mining ships, corvettes, and other small ships parked here and there. The few people who were milling around in the parkway were all wearing masks, that seemed to allow them to see through the thick clouds.

To the side, Mavis quickly spotted a tall building. Like, a _really_ tall building. It stretched high into the atmosphere, with small parkways jutting off to the side from it. A swirl of flying ships circled the building, and as Mavis's extrasensory perception kicked in, she realized that they were actually taxis, bringing people from one part of the building to another.

Keeping her head low, Mavis vanished, then reappeared in front of the entrance of the massive building, and entered into it. Instantly, she was greeted with the sight of a warm golden glow. Above her, Mavis quickly took note of the Cyrdian Empire symbol, etched into the ceiling. There were a number of people milling around the place, most of whom were dressed decently, and were talking in hushed voices.

On the other end of the room, a woman called out to Mavis, "May I help you, ma'am?". It was the lady who was standing behind the front desk. Mavis hesitantly approached her, keeping her head low, "Is there anywhere that I can stay in?" asked Mavis, "like, a stateroom or something?"

The lady looked puzzled, "Of course there is," she said, a little surprised, "do you have payment? Imperial credits are fine with us."

Mavis wasn't about to try to weasel her way out of this one. She quickly waved her hands, "I have money and I've given it to you," she said sternly, looking at the lady right in the eyes, "give me the card to my stateroom and tell me where it is. _Now_."

The lady's eyes glowed for a second, "Uh…" she fumbled with her hands a little, "Yes...of course...how silly of me...here you go…" she quickly handed Mavis a silver card, with intricately carved symbols on it, "it's...the best stateroom in this entire facility….floor 19283 theta B…"

Mavis took the stateroom, and marched off towards the elevators. Luckily, she was alone in the elevator. Mavis quickly scanned the buttons, until she found the button that said, "19283", then selected the "theta" option from the dropdown menu, then selected the "B" class from the dropdown menu after that. Soon enough, she was whizzing straight up.

About a minute later, the elevator dinged, and Mavis stepped out. In front of her, she saw a large oak door, with a card slot on a panel to the side. Mavis quickly inserted her silver card, and walked through the doors as they opened. Instantly, she was greeted by just about the best sight ever.

She was in a massive living room. Luxury couches, chandeliers, and intricately carved tables, along with a flat screen TV made this the single best room ever. On the other side, floor-to-ceiling windows gave her a perfect view of the outside world, with the low-standing clouds, and dark red sunset. The sight was good, but also made Mavis kind of nostalgic.

Mavis decided to take a full on tour of the place. She went around the area, seeing what exactly she owned now. She saw the fourteen bedrooms, each one extraordinarily large, along with the massive swimming pool, and the three spas that were behind the swimming pool. Apart from all of that, there was also a private gym, a dining room that had chandeliers and a luxury dining table, and a massive game room, with a pool table, and a foosball table. Mavis hated foosball. She was bad at it.

Eventually, Mavis got settled down, opening the refrigerator to find some actually decent food sitting inside of it. It was alien food, but it tasted good anyways. After eating, Mavis then retreated to the showers, where she took a bath, washing off the filth that had been accumulating on her for the past week, and then retreated to her bed, quickly falling asleep.

* * *

"We're approaching the wormhole," said Techno, "T equal to forty five seconds, prepare to divert all power to forward engines. Kolt, I need you to hit the warp button when I tell you to, alright? It's imperative that we go to warp once we get into the wormhole, or else the space-time continuum will tear us all to shreds."

"Great," mumbled Kolt, who was standing behind Techno, gripping the warp lever tightly, "I always love it when I'm the one responsible for all of your lives."

"Actually, my calculations is what your lives are depending on," corrected Techno, "Fubuki, have you diverted power yet? We need those engines as smooth as possible for this. If we don't have a good thrust when we enter into the wormhole, then we risk being forced out of it."

"I have it, I have it!" snapped Fubuki, "C'mon, let's get through this stupid wormhole and enter into the galaxy. Might as well get it over with sooner then later. We do nothing by talking about the process over and over again. We've been over this so many times, dangit."

In front of their ship, the wormhole had already loomed into view. It was massive, its diameter extending over several suns. The stars that twinkled in the distance seemed to curve around the edges of the wormhole, making light bend slightly, and creating a weird distortion of its own image.

As the ship slowly began to grow closer to the wormhole, Techno began to make more orders, "Fubuki, divert 13.3% energy to back thrusters….yes, just like that…..Kolt, activate the left wing flap….Johnny, realign those wires, they're making the sensors a little jumbled…..no, no….nevermind….Kolt, divert 2.3% power to the thrusters, Fubuki, bank hard left…."

Under Techno's constant calculations, the ship remained intact, growing ever closer to the wormhole, until finally-

"Kolt, activate warp drives, now!" said Techno. Kolt hit the warp drives, and instantly, the police cruiser jumped directly to hyperspace, flying into the wormhole at over the speed of light. The entire ship lurched forward, causing Kolt, Fubuki, and Johnny to get knocked to the ground. All three of them quickly scrambled back up.

Around them, colors and stars were flying past. Light itself was bending, causing images to appear distorted and unreal. The electronics of the ship were still working fine. After a few seconds, Fubuki murmured, "so...we're going through?"

Johnny, who was also watching the area around them nervously, nodded, "yeah, I think we're doing-"

"Disturbance Detected," warned Techno, "Kolt, get us out of-"

The last thing Johnny remembered seeing was a massive warship. So large, it literally covered up his entire line of sight. A massive explosion, and a huge, colossal burst of light and sound, and everything went black.

* * *

Distress Call from Outpost Revan, Outer Regions -

On 198 sol, our scanners detected a massive object moving out towards the edge of the galaxy. It just appeared on our scanners, I have no idea how it actually got there. According to our estimates, this object is about the size of three medium-sized suns, and emits radio signals, which leads me to the conclusion that it is, in fact, a ship of some sort. However, this conclusion is absolutely ridiculous, as it is impossible, even theoretically, to construct a ship of such magnitude. I am requesting permission to investigate into this new phenomenon, and also request the support of a few warships in case it is of some sort of danger to our civilization.

Response from Outpost Yuri, Outer Regions -

I have received your message, we have also detected this object on our own scanners. It appears to be heading directly towards the center of the galaxy. Such precision is leading me to declare this an intergalactic emergency. I have sent distress signals to all other outposts within the outer regions, and have sent an emergency signal to the Emperor. Right now, I would advise having fighters and warships at the ready, and preparing your garrisons. This does appear to be some sort of ship, from the radio signals that are also coming out from it.

Explorer 4, Exploration Fleet, Unknown Regions -

SOS


	102. The Flying Hotel

Mavis's woke up to the sound of a voice, causing her to sit up straight, sending a shard of glass flying towards the speaker, but before the glass hit, Mavis stopped it in midair. In front of her, was none other than what must've been a waiter. She was holding a menu, and looked absolutely terrified at the shard of glass that was hovering two inches from her eyes.

Mavis quickly dropped the glass, waving her hands, "you saw nothing," she said, "go and...continue to do what you were about to do.". The waiter's eyes dimmed a little, and she stood back up straight, "Ma'am, I was coming up to ask you if you wanted any food. You seemed a little hungry last night, according to the lady at the front desk…."

A few minutes later, Mavis was wolfing down on plates and plates of luxury food, endlessly served from that waiter. It would cost her thousands of credits, but Mavis easily mind-wiped the waiter for it. After going through 137 plates of alien spaghetti, 428 plates of meat, and drinking her way through 928 strawberry slushies, Mavis decided that she was partially full, and the dismissed the waiter.

After eating, Mavis sat back onto the couch, enjoying the feeling of the soft silk against her skin. It's been so long since she's last felt this type of luxury. The hotel is when she last had access to such goods. But even so, Mavis knew that she probably wouldn't be able to stay here for long. Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt were still out there. She had to return to them.

Mavis flipped on the TV, switching the channels until she came across the news channel. She was looking for anything that may interest her, and at first, she was quite unimpressed. A few lightning storms, gold prices increasing, some pirates dropping an antimatter bomb on a moon...then Mavis saw it. Apparently, there were reports of a massive _thing_ appearing at the edge of the galaxy. And along with the reports, she passed by one news source that even said that there were reports of a police cruiser that appeared to be with the _thing_.

A police cruiser. The ship that they had arrived on the seer's planet on. Mavis's mind began to think. She knew that, logically speaking, she shouldn't go for it. The police cruiser could be any police cruiser in the world. It probably wasn't related to Mavis whatsoever. But her intuition told her to go. On the screen, an image of what the police cruiser model was came up, and Mavis instantly recognized it. It was the same model as the one she had arrived in the seer's planet on.

And then there was the huge thing that all the scanners were picking up. Whatever it was, it was emitting radio signals, so it was reasonable to assume that it was a ship of some sort. But even so….a ship of such magnitude was hard for Mavis to comprehend. The largest warship she's ever seen was the Nameless Discipline's flagship.

Mavis silently watched the news a little more, focusing on the massive ship that was approaching the galaxy. As she watched, she received more and more reports from the channels. The ship was exactly the size of three multiplied by the largest sun in the galaxy, and the galaxy's long-range weapons scanners were picking up millions of guns, mounted on the ship. Apart from that, the ship did not appear to emit any sort of fuel residue, and was made out of a material completely unknown to what modern scientists knew of today.

Mavis's concentration was jarred as someone knocked on her door. She quickly turned off the TV, and walked over, opening the door, to find a man standing there. He was surprisingly human-looking, and was wearing a formal suit. As soon as Mavis opened the door, the man gave a deep bow, "Ma'am, my name is Jerich, the finance officer of this building. Because of your wealth and _grand_ style of living, we would require you to pay an extra tax fee for us. I'm sure you can understand."

Mavis sighed. She already didn't like this. "Yeah, no." she said, waving her hands. Instantly, the man's eyes dimmed. He mumbled something, then quickly walked out of the room, scrambling out towards the elevator. Soon enough, he had vanished, probably a few thousand floors underneath Mavis.

Mavis sighed, going back to her room. She had to make a move. She couldn't just sit here, in this luxury stateroom, waiting for something to happen. If Johnny was really out there, then he would be looking for Mavis. If she just gave away her own position….then everyone would know where to go to find her, including Johnny.

It was a risky plan, but Mavis had to go with it. But how would she even get off the planet? Mavis didn't want to leave the luxury stateroom, but at the same time, she knew that she had to leave the planet. Mavis's mind flew. What if she….brought the stateroom with her?

That was a weird thought.

Mavis began to think. Her extrasensory perception quickly gave her intel on the stateroom's condition in space. It was airtight, so that wasn't a problem. It could resist high temperatures, thanks to a decent constructing material. It could regulate temperatures within itself thanks to a closed-circuit air conditioning system, and it was powered by an internal nuclear fusion reactor.

Mavis frowned. Futuristic hotels were so weird.

But she still had to find a way of separating the room from the rest of the building. She would have to find some way of completely shearing off her room from the rest of the building. Kind of like cutting the tip of a pencil off, except this time, the "pencil" was a massive skyscraper that extended into the upper atmosphere.

Of course, Mavis found a way to do it. She concentrated, using her telekinesis to slowly rip the entire top of the building off. All around her, the stateroom began to shake, dust falling from the ceiling lightly. Slowly, Mavis literally ripped the entire top of the building off, and held the stateroom together telekinetically. It wasn't difficult, but it was strange.

Beneath her, with her extrasensory perception, Mavis heard screams, yelling, and radio signals flying everywhere frantically. Apparently, the hotel had just sent out a distress signal. Mavis didn't need anything else to motivate her to move. Raising her hands, she forced the stateroom to slowly rise, flying higher and higher into the sky, accelerating until they were finally in space. By then, tables and chairs were floating above the ground, thanks to the effects of zero-gravity.

Mavis drove the stateroom directly through the orbital shield gateway, crushing a small mining vessel on the way out. Behind her, Mavis felt the Cyrdian ships that guarded the orbital shield gates firing at her. She quickly banked left, avoiding two of the shots, and deflecting the last one telekinetically.

This was certainly a strange space battle.

Mavis concentrated, and jumped to hyperspace, flying directly for the location of where she thought Johnny, Fubuki, Kolt, and Techno were.

* * *

Cedron silently watched the empty space around him from the bridge of the _Destructor_. It had been too long. Too long, since he's last faced a challenge. Too long, since he's been defeated in battle. For Cedron, it's been 500 years since he was last in the Milky Way. Defeated by Mavis. Cedron's blood boiled from the very mention of her filthy name. _Mavis Dracula_.

Next to him, a rebuilt B13948 turned over to Cedron, "Sir, we've began recalibration of the scanners. They'll be ready in a few hours. Should I set course for the center of the galaxy? According to my calculations and my intel reports, there is a battle between the Cyrdian Empire and the Nameless Discipline happening right now."

Cedron waved his hands, a black aura slightly engulfing his body for a second, "Send a radio transmission to the nameless Discipline," he said harshly, "inform them that their _true_ ruler has returned. Tell them that if they don't comply, that their planets will be burnt to the ground and destroyed."

"A very diplomatic solution." said B13948, "I will send the transmission now. How about the weapons systems on board the _Destructor_? Shall I begin charging them up as well? Most of the anti-ship and anti-fighter batteries have been loaded, and our walkers are almost ready for battle as well."

Cedron nodded, "Prepare the primary cannons," he said, "and fire on the planets of the Cyrdian Empire as soon as possible. We will wipe them off the map, and show the Nameless Discipline how powerful their leader has become at this point."

"Yes sir," said B13948, "and what of Mavis? How shall we find her?"

Cedron scowled, the dark aura that surrounded his body growing a shade darker, "do not mention that filthy name in front of me," he hissed, "I will find her, mark my words, and when I do, I'll split her her open, and spill her blood over all the planets of this universe as a reminder that nobody can beat me."

"Speaking of splitting heads open," said B13948, "there appears to be a ship directly underneath us."

"What?" Cedron looked at the main screen. Sure enough, their close-range scanners had picked up a ship that was literally directly underneath them. "Fire on them!" he roared, "destroy them, immediately! Nobody escapes the _Destructor!"_

* * *

"What is the meaning of this?" yelled one of the delegates of the Cyrdian Empire, "a direct threat to both of our factions, that's what it is! Did you not hear him? He's threatening to destroy his own followers to spread his disgusting influence over this galaxy! You must assist us!"

Delegates from multiple factions, big and small, had agreed to arrive in neutral territory to see what they could do to prevent the loss of life in the face of the _Destructor_. The Nameless Discipline and Cyrdian Empire were the two factions that were fighting the most, and therefore, were also the ones that had the most to say.

"Don't act as if we like it either," said one of the delegates from the Nameless Discipline, "we don't want to get shoved around by some long-lost leader either. But given the circumstances, I'm afraid that, if I'm to save as many lives as possible from my own faction, that I must accept his terms."

"Madness!" cried a representative from another, smaller faction, "this _Cedron_...he's threatening to upset the balance of power that we have strove so hard to perfect in this galaxy! We musn't allow him to gain any influence over any faction! Doing so would lead directly to our downfall! We must mobilize our troops and warships, and make a collective effort to destroy their monstrosity!"

"Aye," said the Cyrdian Empire delegate, "I agree. This... _warship_ is far too dangerous to be kept alive. I propose a plan. Each of us will negotiate a peace treaty with each other. There will be no more quarrels amongst our factions. Each faction will send 90% of their navy to help stop the _Destructor_ from cleaving a path of destruction through the galaxy."

As more and more delegates yelled, "Aye!", the delegates from the Nameless Discipline silently glanced at each other. They knew what the other person was thinking. They wanted to help Cedron. He was their strongest leader. He was the most confident, the most daring, the best fighter. The Nameless Discipline was going to help him.

* * *

Techno, Kolt, Johnny, and Fubuki had been hiding underneath the _Destructor_ for a few hours by now. According to Techno, they had been ripped out of the wormhole, since the _Destructor_ was passing through a black hole, and that black hole had somehow interfered with the wormhole continuity, and had broken it.

Luckily for them, Techno was quick to realize that if they hid underneath the hull of the _Destructor_ , then there was no way for its main scanners to pick them up. And it had worked pretty well.

But that didn't stop anyone from feeling less nervous. Johnny was pacing the cockpit, Kolt was staring at the wall, and Fubuki's hands kept on lighting on fire, which wasn't good for Kolt since he was always grasping Fubuki's hands.

"We need to warp!" Johnny said impatiently, after three hours of doing nothing, "if we warp, they can't do anything to stop us. We should escape their clutches, before they somehow notice us, and blast us to bits!"

"I told you," said Techno, "that this ship has gravity wells. Gravity wells that are strong enough to pull us out of warp if we are to enter into it. Going to warp right now is a suicide plan. We have to wait it out. That's what will ensure us survival."

Johnny growled, and returned to pacing the cockpit. He was sick of waiting.

Well, at least he didn't have to wait very long.

"Well," said Techno, thirty minutes later, "your predictions were correct, Johnny. Fubuki, divert all power to shields please. They're training their guns on us. Isn't that lovely."


	103. Hotel Transylvania

Mavis was already beginning to realize why doing what she did was a bad idea. The entire frame of the hotel room that she stole was shaking, and random pieces of furniture were flying everywhere thanks to the lack of gravity. Mavis had erected a strong shield to protect the room during mid-warp, but she still didn't like the idea of her telekinesis being the only thing that held the entire room together.

Apart from that, her extrasensory perception was shooting danger signals all over her as she approached the area she was approaching. By now, she was going at 297c, flying past star systems and other celestial bodies faster than she had ever imagined she could do. But then she felt it. She was there.

Mavis quickly came out of hyperspace, and immediately saw….the biggest grouping of ships she's ever seen. On her side, there were millions of ships, all of them flying different flags. Warships, corvettes, transporters, assault craft, everything was there. And then, on the other side, was the biggest ship Mavis had ever seen. It must've had millions of guns, and even more fighters stationed within it.

This was a strange setting. A massive battleship, millions of smaller battleships, and a hotel room. And a police cruiser. Mavis's eyes quickly fell on the police cruiser. And she immediately knew that whoever was in it was in trouble. The police cruiser was flying out, towards the line of ships that were on the other side of the bigger warship. Its warp engines were completely decimated, and as Mavis watched, she saw it completely split in half.

And she saw Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt fly out of it.

Mavis didn't need any more encouragement to intervene from there. Without really thinking about what she was doing, she placed her hands onto the ground, supplying the hotel room with the life force of thousands of dead people. There was a rumbling noise, as the entire room suddenly became alive. Mavis looked up, at the ceiling, "Keep this place intact, will you?" she asked. The hotel room rumbled in response, sending a loud creaking noise ringing through Mavis's ear.

Mavis took that as a yes. "Alright," she said, "open up the floor-to-ceiling windows, keep everything else inside this room. I'm gonna go rescue my friends real quick.". The hotel room grumbled in response, but even so, the windows slid down, and Mavis was instantly sucked out into the void of space.

Mavis flew straight for Johnny, grabbing him first. His eyes were still open, and he stared at Mavis as if she was a ghost. Well, at least he was holding his breath. He would just have to hold it a little longer than usual. Next to Johnny, Fubuki had managed to form a relatively weak air bubble around herself, and was breathing, but Mavis knew that she wouldn't be able to survive for long. Kolt had already fallen unconscious from the lack of oxygen, but Mavis could still feel his life force. He had a few minutes to live.

Techno whizzed over, grabbing Kolt, and latching onto Mavis. Before anyone else could say anything, Mavis had flew back to the hotel room, which opened up its glass windows, letting them back in. After the windows closed, the hotel got rid of the vacuum, replacing it with fresh oxygen, and everyone was safe once again.

As Mavis and Johnny embraced, Fubuki had scrambled up, running over to Kolt, whose pulse she checked. "He's still alive," she said, a little hysterically, as Mavis and Johnny walked over cautiously, "but he's going to need some medical treatment….Techno, you're up…"

Techno whizzed over, random bottles of medicine and doctor's tools appearing out of nowhere in his hands. He quickly began to attach an oxygen mask to Kolt's face, linking it up to a tank of fresh oxygen, and then began to take random checkups on his status. "He's fine," said Techno, after a few seconds, "but he'll need some rest, and a bunch of fresh oxygen. This case is far worse than Johnny's."

Everyone was silent for a moment, before an explosion outside jarred them all back to reality. Mavis ran over to the glass windows. Somehow, transferring life force to the hotel seemed to return gravity as well. "They're fighting," murmured Mavis, "come on, we need to get outta-"

 _BOOOOM_

Right next to Mavis's new ship, a single shell exploded on top of a massive warship, disintegrating the entire thing in one hit. The line of warships that were there to stop the _Destructor_ were under heavy fire by now. As Mavis watched, some of them launched antimatter missiles, which exploded on the _Destructor_ , but didn't even make a dent in its armor.

"Incredible," Fubuki looked amazed, "a ship of such magnitude….I can't even imagine how much time it must've taken them to build it."

Mavis was silent. She already knew who built the ship, because she could feel his life essence on board the _Destructor_. It was a familiar presence, one which she would never forget. The captain of the _Destructor_ was none other than Cedron himself. She could feel it. She could literally _smell_ it.

Mavis shook her head. She had to learn how to restrict her extrasensory perception. It sometimes distracted her just a tiny bit. Mavis swung around suddenly, bringing her arms up, deflecting a shell that came four inches from hitting their ship, and sending it flying back into an asteroid, where it exploded with the force of a 900 teraton nuclear bomb. This force should've been enough to disintegrate the entire ship, but Mavis created a telekinetic shield around it at the last second.

"Hotel!" yell Mavis, "get us outta here! Now!"

The hotel room slowly turned to the side, and jumped to warp. The last thing Mavis saw of the outer regions was a massive army of warships, losing against Cedron. She knew that they wouldn't be able to hold out. But at the same time, she didn't want to help them. They could all burn. They could all die. And Mavis would sit there and watch.

* * *

As they were in mid-warp, Mavis told Johnny and Fubuki what had happened, and what she had done in order to find them. They still didn't know how they were teleported away from each other when Mavis killed the seer, but that was irrelevant at this point. Mavis told them how she had escaped the Dyson Sphere, met Bob, and warped to the hotel, where she mind controlled the lady at the front desk to give her the room, then told them how she had stolen the room by ripping it off the tip of the building she was in.

Johnny then began to explain to Mavis about what happened to them. He told her of how he had woken up, and how Fubuki and Kolt were planning on going through a wormhole to reach the Milky way, and of how they were intercepted by the _Destructor_ , and how they were pulled out of the wormhole, and how they had hid underneath the _Destructor_ for several hours before the intergalactic factions began to arrive.

"So what're we gonna do now?" asked Fubuki, after a few seconds of silence, "where are we going right now, anyways? I mean, everyone hates us, right? The Nameless Discipline hates us, the Cyrdian Empire is against us, Cedron is against us, and probably a few other neutral factions also hate us as well. We're literally outlaws in every faction possible."

"Yeah, that is a setback," commented Mavis, "but it doesn't matter. According to my extrasensory perception, the ship is heading straight for the unknown regions. We can rest up there without the threat of detection. At least, I hope."

Johnny sighed, "Yeah, hopefully." he muttered, sitting down, "anyways, what's up with that ship? Who made it? Do any of you guys know anything about it? Even Techno seemed impressed at it, and that's really saying something, cuz Techno is super critical on technology-related stuff."

"I think…" Mavis paused for a second, but knew that she had to tell her accomplices about what she knew of Cedron, "I think that Cedron built the ship."

Her words had an immediate effect. Johnny stared, Fubuki accidentally lit the piano on fire, and the hotel growled down at them from the ceiling. Mavis didn't know why the hotel was growling, but that couldn't be good either way.

"I sensed his life presence on board the _Destructor_ ," said Mavis, "he's in there. There's only one explanation for it. When I threw Cedron through the black hole, he must've escaped into some sort of other universe, and returned that ship in order to find and kill me. The reason he's here right now is to hunt me."

There was silence for a moment, then Fubuki hesitantly said, "Are...you sure about that? I mean...a black hole...we can't be certain about it."

"I'm one hundred percent certain that it was Cedron who I felt commanding the ship," said Mavis, "There is no other life force that I'm more familiar with.". That last comment was a lie. Mavis had a sixth sense purely for Johnny's life force, but she wasn't about to say that right now. She had to keep her team alert, and ready in case Cedron found them.

"But that means that Cedron might've spotted you in battle there!" said Johnny, "he might be chasing us right now! We're doomed if he does that. I don't think even your strength could match the firepower of the _Destructor_ , Mavis…."

Mavis shrugged, "I doubt that he knows that it was me who rescued you guys. And if he does, then he'll have to follow us into the unknown regions, which also happens to be the one place he has no idea about. Remember, we're going to the place where nobody else has gone before. If Cedron tries to follow us, he's gonna have to maneuver that huge warship of his through asteroid fields and debris fields. Imagine that."

Fubuki sighed. "I hope you're right," she muttered, "anyways, is there a shower in here, Mavis? I'm real grimy right now…"

After Johnny and Fubuki both took a shower (there were eighteen bathrooms in the hotel room), Mavis gave them a tour of the hotel room, showing them the many bedrooms, the food, the swimming pool and spa, even the refrigerator, which Mavis was hesitant about, since she was kind of hungry.

"What should we name this thing?" asked Johnny, after staring at the room around himself, "I mean...this place is incredible. We can probably turn this into a starship or something...something we can live in and fly in, and maybe fight in."

The hotel growled down at Johnny. He didn't seem to like the idea of being "turned into a starship."

Mavis sighed. "I don't know," she murmured, "we can name it though. And I already have a name for it. It's really fitting, to be honest, and it fits us in particular."

"Really?" Johnny glanced at Mavis to the side, "and what is that?"

Mavis grinned, "The Hotel Transylvania."

* * *

Bob was excited. This was his moment. He had just read the newspaper, which had told him of the battle at the outer regions, and how everyone spotted Mavis in space, rescuing what appeared to be her accomplices. They then vanished, warping away in a very odd-looking starship, towards the unknown regions.

After they had warped away, according to the newspaper, the line of defensive warships continued the fight for another three hours, before finally retreating after receiving massive fatalities. The _Destructor_ then turned course, and, according to a spy drone that was apparently watching it, warped away, towards the unknown regions as well.

This couldn't be a coincidence.

Several other theorists have made this hypothesis as well, and the Cyrdian Empire has already deployed 70,000 warships to the unknown regions to guard the Cyrdian Empire's outposts. The Nameless Discipline, and 480 other smaller factions had deployed defensive warships in the unknown regions as well.

They wouldn't be the only ones heading to the unknown regions. Bob had already made some basic calculations. He knew where Mavis probably went. It was a remote asteroid field, about 3 light years away from the nearest outpost. He knew how to get there. The warp drives had just been finalized the day before, and were now installed on the Dyson Sphere.

Bob grinned a little, staring at the wall of his sleeping hole.

He was going to the unknown regions.


	104. A Big Ship

Johnny, Mavis, Techno, Kolt, and Fubuki came out of warp at the edge of an asteroid field. The _Hotel Transylvania_ stopped there, not wanting to go near the many asteroids that clustered its path. Mavis sensed no planets nearby, and no suns or anything of significant gravitational effect. This appeared to be a rogue asteroid field. Perfect for hiding.

The _Hotel Transylvania_ maneuvered itself to the side, latching itself onto the side of an asteroid. By then, Kolt's breathing had steadied, and Techno had announced that he was stabilized. Mavis had given everyone apart from Kolt full room tours, and Techno had made it his personal mission to go on a technological crusade around the hotel room, and cleanse it of anything that he deemed as "technologically unfit", which was pretty much everything.

By the time they had completely latched onto an asteroid, the mansion had a Draconian Core instead of a nuclear fusion reactor, a shields system, and had guns mounted on the top of it. Techno also modified the mansion itself, installing a wave system in the pool, installing flat screen TVs in every bedroom, and installed an advanced warp drive, along with a full-on control center, and an exit room. He then smoothed out the side that Mavis had ripped, and put on a thick layer of Graphene to protect the _Hotel Transylvania_.

"So," Johnny paused, "do we move now? Or do we wait here? I mean...if what you said was true, and it really is Cedron in that ship….that he'll be coming after us. You really did make a scene out there when you flew over to try to save us out there."

Mavis glared at him, "I was trying to save you," she muttered, making Johnny look at the ground, a little ashamedly, "and yes, I do think that cedron is coming after me right now, but if he is, then he's gonna have to maneuver his ship across an entire asteroid field to do so. Hotel, get us through the asteroid field."

It was then when multiple things happened. The first thing that happened was a warning from the control center, as it detected two massive objects coming from hyperspace. The next thing that happened was Johnny gasping, and falling back onto the ground, clutching his throat. The third thing that happened was a tiny, sleek ship coming out of warp, flying straight for them.

"Crap." Mavis instantly recognized the sleek ship, "that's an old enemy," she muttered, "Hotel, don't open fire. Maneuver us away from that ship instead, go deeper into the asteroid field, so he'll have trouble picking us up on his scanners."

"Who is that?" asked Johnny, "do you know whoever's in there? What did he do?"

"His name's Nihil," said Mavis, "he's a weirdo….he's kinda obsessed with defeating me, but I beat him every time without a challenge. He's probably here again for the same thing. Don't kill him though. He's….not a bad person."

It was a bad excuse, but Mavis didn't want Nihil to die. She honestly didn't really hate Nihil. He kinda reminded Mavis of Fubuki before she began to learn under Mavis's instruction. And by now, Mavis had a sort of obligation to him. She felt _responsible_ for Nihil, as if….he was her student now. Just as much as Fubuki was.

Johnny gave Mavis a sideways glance, "Whaddaya mean?" he asked, "he wants to kill you, but you don't want to kill-"

"Incoming object coming out of hyperspace," warned Techno, "Hotel, divert all power to forward shields, arm all cannons and have them at the-"

Before Techno could even finish what he was saying, the _Destructor_ came out of hyperspace, instantly opening fire on the _Hotel Transylvania_ , sending massie bolts of high-explosive shells flying towards their location. Mavis deflected all of them, causing explosions that were so loud, they almost restored sound in space for a second.

"Shields are at 2%," said Techno urgently, "activating auxiliary shields and diverting all power from forward thrusters to forward deflector shields, angle 45 degrees downwards, activating cloaking device."

"What?" Mavis swung her head around, "I deflected all of those shells! How did our shields get so low?". Techno responded swiftly, not holding back any information that he had, "the shockwaves that the shells created were enough to shatter our shields, Miss Dracula. We can't take another hit like that, no matter what."

The ship wasn't Mavis's only problem. On the other side of the asteroid field, Nihil's fighter realigned itself, flying through the asteroids easily, and also opened fire, sending missiles and blaster bolts firing at the _Hotel Transylvania_. Mavis deflected all of them, but also took note that Nihil was aiming for the engines, not the bridge, as she was hoping for.

"Warning: Tractor Beam detected." the Hotel rumbled down at them. Mavis turned around, right in time to see the entire Hotel get trapped in a beam of purple light. Everything, from the rocks around the hotel, to Nihil's ship, was being pulled in towards the _Destructor_. Mavis growled. If she was on her own, she could escape easily. But she had to stay here to protect Johnny and Fubuki and Kolt.

In the corner, Kolt stirred in his sleep. Fubuki was sitting next to him, checking his heartbeat. As Mavis looked around, she noticed that there was only one open hangar in the _Destructor,_ and it happened to be the one that they were being pulled into as well. Mavis cursed. She couldn't fly them over to a separate hangar in that case.

As they were slowly pulled towards the _Destructor_ , Johnny, Fubuki, and Mavis began to prepare themselves for battle. Techno announced that he had detected a legion of what he described as "super soldiers" waiting for them in the hangars. Mavis was more worried for Johnny than she was for anyone else. She knew that she could take care of herself. The real question was whether or not Johnny could.

As soon as the _Hotel Transylvania_ landed, the first thing Mavis noticed was the silence. She didn't hear anything. But she sensed them with her extrasensory perception. The soldiers were lurking behind the shadows, not willing to reveal their location until the last second. Mavis quickly informed Fubuki and Johnny of this.

"Good," growled Fubuki, a fireball appearing in her hand, "the more of a surprise it is, the more adrenaline I'll get before I turn them into a pile of sawdust.". Mavis grinned a little at this. Fubuki _was_ much stronger than what she was when Mavis first met her. She was more confident, more proud, and less flexible towards external influence.

Johnny kept quiet. Mavis didn't like it, but she knew that Johnny's magnetic powers were unmatched between the three of them. As the engines cut, Mavis signalled to Johnny and Fubuki, who lined up behind the door. Mavis made finger motions, signalling to the two of them on when to attack.

3….2….1….

Mavis smashed the door outwards, launching the metal door straight outwards, and jumped through, sending a shockwave outwards towards the hangar bay without even looking. Fubuki and Johnny quickly followed, and instantly, the entire hangar bay erupted into a firefight. At first, Johnny and Fubuki didn't even see where the shots were coming from. But Mavis saw it instantly.

Mavis ducked, right as an invisible force flew right above her. She grabbed whatever it was, and threw it back against the wall opposite wall, cracking the wall. There was a slight crackling noise, as a soldiers suddenly appeared on the ground in front of the cracked wall. But this wasn't any soldier. It was fourteen feet tall, and had extraordinarily thick armor, along with advanced-looking weapons.

"Where are they?" Mavis turned around right as Fubuki was thrown back against the wall. She got back up, a little blood coming from her forehead, "Mavis, can you do anything so we could actually see them? It's kinda hard right now, fighting something that you can't see!"

Mavis growled. She needed something to reveal every soldier in the room. Mavis ducked, launching another soldier against the opposite wall again. Without hesitation, Mavis yelled, throwing back every enemy soldier in the room, causing them all to go out of cloak.

At least it was an even fight now.

Out of the corner of her eye, Mavis saw Johnny and Fubuki back up a little. They didn't expect the soldiers to be 14 feet tall, and didn't expect them to be wearing such thick armor and advanced weaponry. The battle slowly resumed, with Mavis knocking three of the soldiers back. Instead of dying, like most people, they just clambered back up. Several of them took out massive miniguns and began firing, sending blue bolts of light flying in all directions.

Fubuki was just barely holding out. Her telekinesis helped her block off the bolts of light, but only just. She was being held in place, unable to go anywhere or attack anything. Johnny was hiding right behind Fubuki, using his magnetism to screw around with the electronics of the soldiers, but even this didn't seem to work. "They don't rely on electricity for their weapons!" yelled Johnny, "I won't be able to affect them!"

Finally getting impatient, several of the enemy soldiers launched missiles at them, which flew at Fubuki and Mavis at astonishing speed. Mavis telekinetically deflected the missile, sending it back to the soldier who fired it, but Fubuki was forced out of her defensive stance, and stumbled out of the way. The missile flew past her and collided with a pile of barrels behind her, sending metal flying everywhere.

Mavis grabbed one soldier, tossing him like a ragdoll across the room, where he just got back up. Fourteen missiles made a direct collision with her, but each time, she came out unscathed. She went from soldier to soldier, draining each of their life essences. But it was too slow. On the other end of the hangar bays, Mavis spotted a dozen more soldiers run in, guns blazing.

As another missile hit her, Mavis jumped up, bringing her fist down on one of the soldiers so hard that his armor was crushed like tin foil. Behind Mavis, she sensed something. "Mavis!" Johnny yelled, "Get Fubuki and Kolt and Techno! I'm gonna try forming a magnetar in here!"

Mavis didn't even know what a magnetar _was_ , but she wasn't going to stick around to figure out. "What about you?" she asked, "you'll be here!". "Yeah, but I'll be fine." replied Johnny grimly, "I have magnokinesis, remember. This type of stuff can't affect me as long as I control it.

That wasn't promising, but Mavis needed someone to take care of the soldiers. She blasted all of the enemy soldiers back, then turned to Johnny, kissing him quickly and surprising him, "You better stay alive," she warned him, "for me. Okay?"

Johnny grinned. "Of course." he said, "I'll be fine, Mavis, you need to get outta here!"

Mavis nodded. She ran over to Fubuki, helping her up. Fubuki had a couple of bullet wounds, but Mavis could see the wounds already closing. "Come on," she said urgently, "we gotta get Techno and Kolt…"

Mavis and Fubuki stumbled back on board the _Hotel Transylvania_. Mavis grabbed Techno, shoving him into her back pocket, and helped Fubuki carry Kolt, who was still unconscious. The two of them began making their way back, knocking down soldiers wherever they could. It was then when Mavis felt it.

Danger.

Mavis formed a shield around herself and Fubuki and Kolt, right as there was a burst of blue light from behind her. Mavis turned around right in time to see a massive ball of _stuff_ form in the center of the hangar bays. Everything was being sucked into it. Soldiers were flying into the ball and getting crushed, as well as barrels, fighters, and ships. On the other side, Mavis spotted Johnny, with his hands outstretched, controlling the magnetar.

But even as Mavis watched, she knew that Johnny wouldn't be able to hold it for long. Already, she felt Johnny's life force dampening, slowly flickering out. Mavis reached out telekinetically, grabbing Johnny and pulling him back to herself. By now, the magnetism in the room had just exceeded 14 trillion gauss, causing the walls themselves to start to bend inwards despite the strength of their walls.

A voice suddenly came onto the intercom. "Collapse Breach in Hangar Bay A117, security doors closing. Warning: Security doors closing."

On the other end of the massive hangar bay, about three football fields away from them, Mavis spotted the security doors begin to slowly close. Mavis scowled. She hated how she was always the one with all the responsibility. Without waiting to explain, Mavis grabbed Fubuki, Kolt, Techno, and Johnny, and jumped directly to the door, going so fast that the subatomic particles around Mavis were literally broken, sending massive nuclear explosions following the area where Mavis just ran through. Mavis reappeared behind the security doors, setting Johnny, Kolt, and Fubuki down. Behind her, the security doors completely shut, closing off the hangar bays from where Mavis was.

But before the hangar bay doors closed, Mavis had felt something. Something big. Not as big as the starship, but still relatively large. At first, she ignored it, not wanting to believe what she had felt, but this time, she felt it yet again.

The Dyson Sphere had just warped in.


	105. Final Move

"Sir, we've just picked up a relatively large magnetic signature coming from the negative hemisphere of the ship," said B13948, "it appears to be emitting radio signals. Should we open fire on the object? According to our scanners, it also seems to be containing energy that is equivalent to that of a medium-sized star."

"Mmmm?" Cedron turned in his throne-like seat on the bridge, "scan it first. Train our guns on it, and deploy spy drones to return intel on it. The last thing I want is for us to destroy something potentially useful. How is our bombardment of the galaxy going? How many planets have been destroyed?"

"From our last barrage of the primary cannons," B13948 paused a little, as he read something on the screen, "has destroyed approximately 9,238 planets, 729 of which had over 7 billion life forms on it. It appears as if our barrage was a success. Should I order our cannons to fire again?"

"No," Cedron pressed a few buttons on his control panel, "for now, concentrate our efforts on finding Mavis and her accomplices. You can kill her friends, but don't kill Mavis herself. She must die by _my_ hand, and my hand only. I will not allow a stupid _girl_ to humiliate me in such a way."

"As you wish, sir," B13948 turned back to his control panel, "should I alert the main garrison, or only the search garrisons? Most of them are on the reserve right now."

"Deploy everything," growled Cedron, "I want Mavis to be _found_. Make sure that all the guards are on highest alert. Deploy the titan-class destroyers in the rooms that are large enough to hold them, and shut off all exits and entrances. Mavis goes _nowhere_."

"A very wise decision," said Techno, "I will begin the preparations."

"Yes," Cedron turned back to the bridge windows, which was actually a giant projector that had a hologram of the ship and its surrounding environment, since a regular bridge window would be too small, "I'll have my revenge," he growled, "I always do."

* * *

"This ship is _how_ big?" asked Mavis, her mouth open, staring at Techno.

"I've told you," said Techno, watching some numbers on a computer screen that he had just hacked, "this ship is about twenty seven astronomical units long. It has over ten trillion guns, and is capable of destroying entire planets with its main batteries."

Mavis seemed more interested in the size, "How much is an astronomical unit?" she asked, even though she already knew the answer, "is it even possible to build a ship this large? How did he get the materials and the power to get this ship to work?"

"An astronomical unit is approximately the distance from the Earth to the Sun," said Techno, making Mavis wince at the mentioning of the word "Earth", "to answer your other questions, I've detected a hyperchip in the center of this ship. This hyperchip is pretty much a super compressed galaxy, and the ship is using the energy from it to run itself. As for the materials, this ship appears to be made of a material that does not exist in this universe."

"Well, that's great," next to Mavis, Fubuki slumped over, rubbing her eyes, "I hate it when we get trapped on these ships," she complained, "it's so _restricting_. Anyways, what do we do now? We can't just sit here and wait for Cedron to find us."

As if right on cue, a voice came onto the intercom. It was robotic and technical-sounding, and issued out instructions to the rest of the ship, "Attention all crew members of the _Destructor_ , there is a stowaway on board. All reserves are to be deployed immediately, and all exits and entrances are being shut down."

Mavis glanced at Johnny, "Well," she said, "they know we're here."

In the corner, Kolt mumbled something. Fubuki knelt down next to him, feeling his heartbeat again, "he's getting better," she commented, "but he's going to need some more time. Techno, you think you can speed up the process of healing him?"

"Of course I can," said Techno, whizzing over, "but I won't be able to assist you if I do," he said, "so please don't make a stupid mistake while I'm helping Kolt.. No offence intended, of course, Miss Dracula."

Mavis sighed. She took note of her surroundings yet again. According to her extrasensory perception, they were sitting in the back of the ship, in a small electrical maintenance room. Nearby, there were fourteen squadrons of soldiers patrolling the hallways, and looking into rooms. Mavis noted one particular squadron that was only about a hundred feet away.

"Hey," Mavis alerted her group, "there's a squad of nasty-looking soldiers only about a feet away, I would suggest getting ready to fight-". Mavis suddenly felt something. One of the soldiers in that squad was looking directly through the walls. Directly at her. Mavis gaped. They could see through walls?

Next thing they knew, the door suddenly slammed open. Mavis blinked. These soldiers moved faster than what she had anticipated. Next to her, Johnny stood up, his hands glowing red with magnetism, and behind him, Fubuki formed a telekinetic shield around herself and Kolt. Techno continued to treat Kolt as if nothing had happened.

The soldiers fired into the room, sending laser bolts flying in Johnny and Mavis's direction. Mavis didn't bother blocking them, taking all the hits. She ran up to one of the soldiers, grabbing him and throwing him down the hallway, sending him flying 320 feet back, where he got back up and charged at Mavis, exceeding Mach 20.

Johnny couldn't do much about the enemy soldiers, thanks to their non-electronic weapons systems, so he resorted to simply throwing random objects at them using his magnetic powers. Mavis was taking the most hits, but was also the one who wasn't tiring at all. She blasted all the soldiers back, taking a dozen direct missile hits, vanished then reappeared above them, killing one soldier through sapping his life force, then crushed another one into the size of a penny. The other tencame at her, but before they could even get close, Mavis had crushed them as well.

Mavis ran over to Johnny, "you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine," said Johnny, "but they know where we are now. We gotta get moving, before more soldiers arrive. We don't want to get trapped in this hallway, you know. That would really suck for all of us. Especially with Kolt out of the action."

It was then when Mavis noticed the alarms that were mounted on the walls. They were flashing red, and above her, Mavis heard soldiers yelling at each other in a foreign language. They seemed excited about finding Mavis. Mavis heard the sound of footsteps approaching with extrasensory perception, and on the other side of the hallway, saw a few soldiers run down a stairwell. They saw Mavis, and immediately started yelling, firing their weapons.

Mavis knew that these guys could run faster than Johnny could. She grabbed Johnny, Fubuki, and Kolt, and immediately jumped to 123c, flying through 673 hallways and reappearing in a different location entirely. Mavis had no idea where she was. Her extrasensory perception had only made sure that she didn't crash into anything, and that was all.

Mavis immediately noticed her surroundings as a red-walled room filled with weird instruments. Nobody was in the room, but it had a strange feeling to it, as if it was supposed to be the center of religion for the people who lived on the ship. All around Mavis, were scrolls, books, and devices that were used to read them.

The soldiers were long gone, probably a few hundred miles behind them. Next to Mavis, Johnny was looking around, staring at the texts as well, "What do they say?" he asked, "anything interesting? I mean...you're the one with extrasensory perception, after all."

Mavis walked up to one scroll, opening it up, and with her extrasensory perception, began reading the text.

 _...and Lord Cedron will light a fire into the oblivion, destroying all whom shall oppose his reign and just rule. Those whom Cedron deem as unfit, shall die, and those whom Cedron deem as worthy, shall be rained with a thousand gifts and rewards. Those whom commit heresy and treason, shall suffer the consequence of slow and painful death. Those whom support Cedron and accept his rule, shall be rewarded with a thousand pleasures._

"He's building a damn religion around himself…" muttered Johnny, "isn't that great. All these aliens believe that Cedron's some sort of lord or something? He's nothing though! Anyone who has half a brain cell can see that very clearly!"

"Yeah, well, apparently not everyone has half a brain cell," said Mavis, "come on, we should get moving before the soldiers find us again. We're still in the back of the ship, but we've moved closer to the center. We could hide in the storage compartments if we wanted to."

The group began to get ready. Techno scanned the area around them, quickly locating the nearest soldiers only about a mile from where they were. The people on this ship seemed to stay far away from this room, at all costs. Why they did that, Mavis had no idea whatsoever. Probably had something to do with killing heretics.

As they began to make their way out of the room with all the scrolls and books in it, walking through four security doors without seeing anyone, and going back into the hallway, the alarms suddenly began blaring again, causing Fubuki to accidently light the walls on fire. On the intercom, the same robotic voice as before came on, "All gun crews, man your stations, external threat detected."

Mavis already knew what that external threat was. The Dyson Sphere.

* * *

Bob was at the controls of the Dyson Sphere, flipping switches and pressing buttons. On the bridge screens, he saw bolts of cannon fire rain down on the Dyson Sphere, causing entire chunks of it to rip off entirely and disintegrate in space. He gritted his teeth, diverting all power to shields, abandoning the engines entirely. The Dyson Sphere wouldn't be able to survive for long.

 _Warning: Shields at 14%_ , a female voice from the intercom warned Bob. Behind him, the security doors to the bridge were sealed shut. Bob was lucky that the Cyrdian Engineers made such advanced security doors, because he was able to survive in that bridge for about three days by now without anyone else getting in.

Bob quickly activated his scanners, scanning the massive ship that was in front of him. There had to be some weakness. Some sort of gap in the armor. Every ship had one. For a normal ship scanner, this would've been impossible, but for a something as large as a Dyson Sphere, the scanners picked it up immediately.

A massive well of energy, that was being held in the center of the ship. It was the engines, as it was the only thing that could supply enough energy to run the entire ship while also keeping it intact. Bob had to find some way to destroy it. Some way to exploit its weakness.

As another massive shell collided directly with the Dyson Sphere, sending an explosion that was the equivalent of a 500 teraton nuclear bomb shuddering up the downwards hemisphere of the Dyson Sphere, Bob saw that the shields had reduced themselves to 0%.

Bob knew that he wasn't going to make it out. Behind the security doors, he heard renewed yelling, as the soldiers who were garrisoned in the Dyson Sphere attempted to drill through the door yet again. If Bob survived, he would either be captured by Cyrdian Forces or get incinerated by the _Destructor_. There was only one option left.

Bob typed in a command onto the control console of the Dyson Sphere. The bridge slowly turned towards where the engines were. Bob typed in another command, and immediately felt the warp drives begin to heat up.

Bob closed his eyes at the last second, as the Dyson Sphere jumped to warp, ramming into the side of the _Destructor_ , and exploding.

* * *

 _Destructor Console Report Log:_

 _Minor damage to external armor and internal engines, sun-sized object rammed into the ship. It exploded, slightly penetrating the armor of the ship, and causing minor damage to the primary engines. Advise that repair crews be deployed immediately. If engines overheat, then potential celestial collapse will occur, resulting in the ship exploding. Deploying automatic repair drones immediately._

 _Advise Extreme Caution_


	106. Old Grudges

As Mavis, Johnny, Fubuki, and Techno ran down the hallway, Fubuki practically carrying Kolt over her shoulder by now, they saw a dozen drones fly through a door at the other end of the hallway. Mavis tensed, but the drones simply flew right through another set of doors, completely ignoring them. They were repair drones. Something had happened to the _Destructor_.

"Come on!" she yelled, going through another set of doors, right as she came face to face with a group of soldiers. They were standing on the other side of the hallway, with their guns pointed at them even before they came through the door. Mavis cursed. She let her extrasensory perception down right as she needed it.

Mavis formed a shield, right as the soldiers opened fire, sending laser bolts flying at her. They were all deflected, not a single one getting through the shield that Mavis had formed. One of the soldiers ran forward, activating an energy sword and swinging it down at Fubuki, who rolled out of the way. Fubuki hit that same soldier in the face with the fireball, which didn't seem to have an effect on the soldier. He simply roared at swung his blade down again, cleaving a hole through the area Fubuki was just in.

"Ugh….these guys are tougher than the usual soldiers!" yelled Fubuki, as she sprayed fire into the soldier's eyes, causing him to only grow angrier, "Mavis, you think you can take them?". Mavis was already on it. She killed the soldier who was pursuing Fubuki by punching him, then disappeared, reappearing over the line of soldiers on the other end of the room. Fubuki was about to help by launching a few fireballs, but in the blink of an eye, she realized that all the soldiers were dead, Mavis standing amongst them.

"How did you…" Fubuki shook her head, blinking a little, "okay, whatever," she finished, "which way should we go?" she asked Mavis, looking around herself. Mavis was also listening to the area around her. She suddenly put her hands up. "Stop," she ordered, and everyone in the group stopped moving immediately, "I sense…." Mavis's eyes narrowed. Her extrasensory perception was picking up something. Something very subtle….

Mavis suddenly picked it up. A single oxygen atom, which was moved out of the way by something. That was all she needed. She reached forward, grabbing the cloaked mech that was standing literally three feet in front of her, and crushed it like a tin can, tossing it aside.

Fubuki stared at Mavis as if she was doing something earth-shattering, "you…" Fubuki sighed, "you're _so_ damn strong, Mavis...I sometimes can't even wrap my head around how you've become this….awesome."

Mavis shrugged, "It's not that much," she commented lamely, "Come on, we have to find a way to get outta this ship, before Cedron finds us and kills all of us. Techno can you do a scan of the ship to see where an exit may be?"

"Of course, Miss Dracula." Techno paused, as his scanners activated, sensing the entire ship and trying to find any gaps or holes in its defenses or exits, "I can't find anything….however...there is a way to punch a hole through the ship by force…but it's incredibly risky, and may involve in the ship's destruction."

Mavis motioned to the group, and they began to walk down the hallway. While doing this, Mavis turned back to Techno, "What weakness are you talking about? I thought this ship was too big to punch a hole through, no matter how hard you tried."

"False," Techno's display screen began to glow a little, "the ship has an engine that runs off of a compressed galaxy at the center of the ship. A few moments ago, a Dyson Sphere rammed into that very location, dislocating the generator and causing an energy leak. We could exploit this leak to cause a massive explosion, that would release all of the energy in the compressed galaxy. This should be enough to destroy the ship, as well as everything within a 120,000 light-year radius."

"But…" Mavis paused, "how would we survive that?"

"You are capable of accelerating to speeds far beyond the speed of light," commented Techno, "you could take Fubuki, Kolt, and Johnny and jump to your maximum speed, and you'll probably be able to outrun the explosion. I can wire the engines to trigger the explosion, but I need to reach the control panel first."

"Wait…" Mavis paused, "what do you mean, you'll need to wire the engines to trigger the explosion? You mean you won't be able to make it? You want to...kill yourself for us? That's not happening, whether or not you like it, Techno."

"Of course not," said Techno, "I can wire the explosion to happen after a finite amount of time has passed, so we'll have time to escape. We'll all be fine, don't worry. I just need to reach the control panel first…"

Mavis's eyes began to glow, locating the control panel in the room. It was in the front of the ship, on the bridge. Great. The bridge. The one place where she was sure to find Cedron. Behind her, Mavis heard Kolt groan in his sleep again. Fubuki nudged Mavis, "we have to do something soon," she said urgently, "before they find us again."

It was then when multiple things happened. The first thing that happened was a massive squadron of soldiers opening a door at the other end of the hallway and running in. The second thing that happened was the sealed door to the side of Techno opened up, and a mech captured Techno in a capture beam. The third thing that happened was Nihil jumping into view, activating an energy blade and charging at Mavis.

Mavis addressed each individual problem. The first thing she did was duck, letting Nihil's blade fly over her face. She then blasted the squadron of soldiers back with telekinesis, then grabbed Nihil and tossed him against the wall like a rag doll, causing cracks to appear. By the time Mavis reached the sealed door that the mech that captures Techno had gone through, the Mech was already gone.

"Fubuki, take care of this idiot." growled Mavis, pointing to Nihil. Nihil growled, getting back up, and seemed to come after Mavis, but before he could get close, a fireball incinerated the area he was just in, as Fubuki began to launch fireballs at him. They were quite evenly matched. Nihil was faster, but Fubuki had more firepower. Johnny was shooting lightning at anything that looked remotely hostile, and Kolt was laying on the ground, within a telekinetic shield that Fubuki had set up.

Mavis charged the line of soldiers. So far, Johnny's lightning attacks, although far exceeding natural lightning voltage, has done absolutely nothing to the soldiers apart from mildly annoy them. Mavis streaked through the soldiers, grabbing them and throwing them back, killing half of them instantly using her life drain powers, then dematerialized into mist, flying up towards the ceiling, where she crushed the last half.

Next to Mavis, Fubuki cried out with pain as she stumbled back. Nihil had landed another strike with his energy blade on her. He grinned, raising the blade, but before he could kill Fubuki, Mavis had appeared in front of her, blasting Nihil back with telekinetic energy. Nihil got back up, spitting blood, "I promised to defeat you!" he yelled at Mavis, "I've trained very hard for this!"

Nihil ran at Mavis, running far faster than what Mavis expected. He ran so fast, that he created twenty afterimages, confusing Johnny and Fubuki. Fubuki was especially impressed. Twenty afterimages was nothing to laugh at, but at the same time…

"Weak."

The next thing Nihil knew, there were at least a million afterimages of Mavis that filled the entire room. Mavis wasn't even going fast at all. This was like a walking pace to her. She quickly located Nihil, and smashed him against the wall, pinning his arms behind his back, and throwing him down the hallway.

Nihil didn't move. Mavis knew that he was still alive, and still conscious, but simply too weak to do anything. Fubuki got up, a fireball appearing in her hand, but Mavis stopped her, "No," she said, "don't kill Nihil...he's not a bad person like that...keep him alive, as long as he targets me, he shouldn't be a threat to anyone."

Nihil, on the other end of the hallway, shakily got back up to his feet. He glared at Mavis. "Next time I see you, I _will_ defeat you!" he yelled. With that, he pressed a button on his wrist, and dematerialized, vanishing from view completely.

Before Mavis could even congratulate herself on her work, she heard footsteps coming down the hallway. Turning, she immediately spotted more soldiers run into the hallway. But this time, they didn't fire. They simply lined up around them, blocking their exits. One of them spoke through an intercom, _Mavis Dracula! You are to surrender and accompany us to the arena, where you shall meet your end at the hands of Cedron. Tell your friends to surrender as well, or we'll be forced to kill them._

Mavis hissed, "If you think you're so tough, then prove it!" she yelled back. Without even thinking about it, the ground beneath her had begun to crack. Mavis hated it when people threatened her like this. It annoyed her.

But she instantly regretted her response.

Next to Mavis, Fubuki gave out a cry, as she rushed over to Kolt. Mavis turned around and immediately saw what happened. A bullet wound, going straight through Kolt's heart. Under normal circumstances, Mavis would've used her healing powers to keep him alive, but something in the bullet had caused instant death for Kolt. At the other end of the hallway, a single soldier with a sniper stood behind a row of infantry.

Fubuki screamed.

Mavis only had enough time to erect a shield around herself and Johnny before the entire hallway was engulfed in a bright green flame. It was an absolute hellstorm, the strongest Mavis had ever seen of Fubuki. All around her, Mavis felt the soldiers running around, most of them still alive thanks to their advanced armor, but several of them dead.

All at once, the flames suddenly stopped. Fubuki was flung back, smashing into the opposite wall. She slid down, unconscious. Mavis scrambled back up, looking to the source of Fubuki's defeat. Behind a pile of charred soldiers, was none other than Cedron himself. His eyes, which were now solid black, watched Mavis's.

"Say hello," said Cedron, "to your downfall, Mavis Dracula."

* * *

Techno walked down the hallway, in the hacked Mech that he was using at the moment. As the doors opened in front of him, he marched into the bridge, where he got several funny glances from the droids and workers around him, most of which were bridge crew members. A droid who was sitting in the front stood up, "We were not expecting a visit from a mech," he said. Techno instantly recognized his voice as the same voice that always came on the intercom, "what is your identification number and security ID?"

Techno quickly hacked the mech's memory database, "Identification number is 91839471934729374991749327, security ID is 1209102847201929. I was sent here by Cedron to protect the bridge from possible external attack. He has gone off to finish the heretic known as Mavis Dracula."

The droid sitting at the front didn't seem to want to believe him, but turned back around and began to go back to his regular business, so Techno also tried to act his part out. He stood right next to the doors, processing what to do next. Techno knew that if he was able to connect with the control panel, that he could trigger a self-destruction that would destroy the entire ship. But at the same time, he needed some way of warning Mavis, who was apparently also fighting Cedron.

It was then when the droid at the front suddenly turned to him, "Your magnetic signature does not match the magnetic signature of the mech that you claim to be," said the droid, "you must be an imposter. Security, please dispose of this mech immediately."

Three soldiers came out, armed with power armor and some very big miniguns. They immediately opened fire, sending bullets spraying all over the Mech's front. Techno returned fire, knocking one soldier back, but was soon forced out of the mech entirely, as the armor began to crack.

Techno quickly detonated the soldier's grenades, engulfing each of them in a ball of flame. Out of the three soldiers, two of them were killed. Techno ran up to the last one, using his technokinesis to tighten the soldier's armor so much that he suffocated. Before Techno was able to do anything else, though, a fist came out of nowhere and sent him flying back towards the entrance. When Techno got back up, he quickly saw the droid leader approaching him.

"You are a threat," the droid's voice was even more mechanical than Techno's voice, "prepare to be eliminated."


	107. Techno's Final Word

At first, Mavis was going to initiate the attack, but before she could, the hallway began to expand. The walls opened outwards into a larger room, the walls slid back, and the ceiling lifted itself, until they were standing in a room approximately the size of a basketball court. Mavis shoved Johnny and Fubuki to the side, erecting a barrier between them and the rest of the room.

"What're you doing?" asked Johnny, scrambling up, "I wanna fight too! Get this thing out of the way so we can help!"

Mavis shook her head, "This isn't your fight," she said sadly, "Cedron doesn't want you. He wants me. And I'll give him what he wants.". To prove her point, Mavis began a a telekinetic build up of energy right behind her. Once she released it, she would be accelerated to several times the speed of light.

Cedron grinned, "You're confident," he commented, "even as I have conquered an entire separate universe, and built this ship, you are still confident in your ability to defeat me? I have never heard of a more hopeless situation. You might as well give up right now."

"I beat you once, I'll do it again." the words made Cedron's eyes glow with a red fury. "You're only confident in your abilities because you think that the blessing of Vordania makes you unbeatable. Well, you're wrong. I beat you before. Therefore, I can beat you again. _You're_ the one who's walking into a hopeless situation."

Without waiting for a proper response, Mavis let loose the energy behind her. She rocketed forwards, flying towards cedron at three million times the speed of light, going so fast that she literally passed through everything she hit-everything except Cedron, who also accelerated to nearly equal speeds.

The two of them collided in midair, their fists connecting. As soon as their fists connected, a massive shockwave launched outwards that was so strong, the walls cracked right open. Cedron roared, telekinetically grabbing Mavis, and throwing her straight through the graphene wall, sending her flying through three more layers of graphene. Mavis got right back up, vanishing, then reappearing next to where Cedron was, ducking as another punch sailed over her head, then blasting Cedron back with a telekinetic blast.

" _Weak_." Cedron flew at Mavis yet again, but Mavis once again dodged his attack, reappearing on the other end of the room. Cedron released a wave of lightning at Mavis, a move that Mavis was not anticipating, but still had the reaction time to react to. She rolled out of the way, redirecting the lightning back to Cedron.

Mavis didn't even have time to see how Cedron reacted to the lightning. She saw Cedron running at Mavis, and soon enough, was knocked back through the hole in the wall that was created earlier. Mavis flew into a cafeteria, knocking over a few tables. Cedron leapt into the same room, and as soon as he did, Mavis used telekinetic to trigger a massive nuclear explosion right where Cedron was. The graphene walls were enough to withstand the explosion, but Mavis was hoping that the nuclear explosion would be enough to subdue Cedron.

Of course, she was wrong. Cedron flew out of the flames, straight at Mavis, but this time, Mavis noticed that his hands were glowing bright red. "You are a resilient one, Mavis Dracula!" he yelled, "but this time, I _will_ end you! Any mortal being would find even their subatomic particles vaporized after this!"

Next thing Mavis knew, the entire room was filled with a massive fireball. Her extrasensory perception quickly informed her that the temperatures in the room were exceeding seven septillion degrees celsius. But even so, Mavis was completely unharmed. She flew through the fire, grabbing Cedron and throwing him against the melting walls.

"Still alive?" Cedron seemed legitimately happy at this, "then that means more fun for me!"

Cedron flew back at Mavis. This time, Mavis let herself take the hit. Cedron's punches were far stronger than the average person's hit, but it still didn't seem like much to Mavis. Mavis decided to stop Cedron's relentless attacks after a few minutes, intercepting his arm, and throwing him back into the flames, not like that would do anything.

"Ugh…" Cedron growled, "you want to fight like that? Very well then...take _this_!"

Cedron ran up to Mavis, and kicked her directly on the stomach, sending her flying through at least three hundred walls and into open space. Mavis quickly reacted, flying out of the way yet again as Cedron flew towards her. Cedron clasped his hands together, "Let's see if you can survive this…"

Mavis immediately spotted them. A dozen glowing orbs of red stuff, each other about the size of a city. Compared to the ship, they were tiny, but they were quite big compared to Mavis. And according to her extrasensory perception, this is what humans called a neutron star.

Cedron laughed as he threw the neutron stars at Mavis. They were being formed by him, each one like a bullet in a gun. Mavis, instead of retreating, went on the offensive, taking Cedron off-guard. She rocketed straight for the first neutron star, punching straight through it. She literally cracked her way through every neutron star, until she was right on top of Cedron.

"You frustrate me," growled Cedron, "out of all my adversaries," his eyes seemed to bulge with excitement, "you are the _only_ one who has survived this long, Mavis Dracula!"

Mavis drew back her fist and punched, sending Cedron flying back in space. He stopped himself, turning to Mavis, and releasing massive jets of gamma rays that collided directly with Mavis, but had no effect on her. All sorts of things began to happen. A rogue planet came flying at Mavis, but Mavis simply broke it using telekinesis. More neutron stars, magnetars, even asteroids were flung at Mavis. Nothing happened to her. Rather than tiring out, Mavis was actually gaining energy.

This time, Cedron was growling with frustration. No longer, amused, he flew at Mavis, punching her as hard as he could. Any normal opponent would've been destroyed instantly, but Mavis didn't even seem to feel it. She flung Cedron back, onto a neutron star fragment, in which he launched himself off of, still trying to reach Mavis.

Mavis didn't give him a chance to reach her. Before he could even get within a hundred feet of Mavis, Mavis had vanished, and reappeared behind him, telekinetically chucking him like a frisbee against the side of a neutron star, slamming him so hard that the neutron star cracked. By now, there were neutron stars everywhere.

Cedron was grabbed yet again and slammed through three more neutron stars before he managed to level himself. He got back up, growling, and spitting blood. Mavis blinked. Cedron was bleeding. That meant that he was almost down, almost in defeat...but there was still that look of crude determination in his eyes.

It was then when Mavis noticed something. Everything had...stopped? The ship had stopped moving. The neutron stars had stopped spinning. Even the gamma rays had stopped moving. On the other side, Cedron grinned, approaching Mavis, and punching her.

Mavis dodged the attack.

"Wha-" Cedron stared at Mavis, his eyes wide, "how are you moving?" he insisted, "I froze time! How are you still moving?"

Mavis sighed, "Really?" he asked, "stopping time is your grand finale? I mean...all that does is freeze time. What's the point of that if you move faster than time?"

Next thing Cedron knew, Mavis was right on top of him. She grabbed Cedron face, clutching it tightly, "Now it's for my final move," growled Mavis, "this is for Bob, for Kolt, for Fubuki, for Johnny, for Techno, for myself, and for every damn life you've killed in this galaxy. Absolute Death."

Cedron screamed as his life essence was completely dispelled. Mavis had never done that before. She had never tried it before. But if one person in this universe deserved it, it was Cedron.

* * *

Techno dodged B13948's first attack, flying to the side. He used his technokinesis to give himself a plasma rifle, firing it at B13948, but the bolts didn't seem to do anything to him. There was some sort of shield around him, something that Techno couldn't penetrate. Techno attempted to hack B13948 to disable his shields, but his electronic defenses were too much for Techno.

B13948 continued to approach Techno, firing two plasma cannons that had just appeared on his arms. Techno quickly created a shield generator on the ground next to him, protecting himself. He used his technokinesis to break the piping on the ceiling, then opened the seal to a chlorine tank a few miles away from his positions. Soon enough, hydrochloric acid was raining down on B19348, who stumbled a little, as his armor began to slowly disintegrate, but in the end, he also set up a force field.

Shutting off the hydrochloric acid, Techno lunged out at B13948, surprising him with such a melee attack. Techno took scraps of metal from the ground and used it to create an arm, which he used to pummel B13948, smashing his face inwards. Already, screws and bolts were scattering onto the ground, as Techno smashed B13948's face again and again.

B13948's fist suddenly came out, intercepting the mechanical arm Techno had just improvised, and twisted it into a U-shape, tossing it aside. B13948 stood back up. He quickly made an attempt at hacking Techno's security systems, but luckily for Techno, his draconian core wasn't capable of being hacked.

B13948 roared with frustration, lunging forward and punching Techno in the face, causing a crack to appear on his screen. Another hit brought another crack, and a third one completely destroyed one of Techno's optical sensors, making him half-blind.

As another fist from B13948 came down at him, Techno suddenly saw an opening in B13948's body. He quickly grabbed the opening, using it to try to hack him. At first, it worked, Techno's technokinesis going into B13948's defense systems, and shutting them down. Techno then proceeded to B13948's control center, which was located in the head. Before he was able to do this, however, B13948 noticed what was happening, and activated self-destruction.

Techno was thrown back, smashing himself against the wall of the bridge. His optical sensors were in disarray, and his body was malfunctioning in 1,298 places. He slowly and awkwardly whizzed over to the control panel, grabbing a plasma rifle and shooting everyone else in the bridge. On the control panel, Techno saw Mavis, helping Johnny and Fubuki up. Fubuki still looked unconscious. Techno also noticed, in hangar 237, where the magnetar was formed by Johnny, the _Hotel Transylvania_ was, surprisingly, still intact. Techno's gravitational resistors really did work well.

Techno pushed a few buttons, and immediately, he got onto the intercom, "Miss Dracula...this is...Techno…" Techno's voice was in three different tones, since his vocular devices were heavily damaged, "get to...hangar...237…."

The hangar _was_ safe now. The magnetar had been destroyed by some collapse repair droids a few hours ago. On the security screens, Techno saw Mavis look up in surprise, and grab Johnny and Fubuki, helping them up. She then completely vanished from the screens, and reappeared on the computer screen that showed hangar 237.

Techno saw Mavis grab Fubuki and Johnny and help them onto the _Hotel Transylvania_.

"Miss Dracula…" Techno's voice began to splutter a little, "it was...an honor...to work with you...you must...leave the milky way...immediately…."

Behind Techno, a squad of soldiers suddenly ran through the bridge doors. Before they could do anything, Techno had detonated their grenades, killing all of them. Techno suddenly heard Mavis's voice. It was panicked.

 _Techno? What are you doing? Get down here!_

Mavis was talking through the security camera. Techno sighed, "Miss Dracula….I lied to you...there was never a way...to wire...this ship to explode…..it has to be….manual…."

 _What? No, we're not leaving you!_

"Go…" Techno pressed another button on the control panel, "goodbye, Mavis Dracula…."

In the hangar bays, the shields shut off, and instantly, the _Hotel Transylvania_ was sucked out into space. Behind Techno, more soldiers ran through the bridge doors, firing at him. Techno took two hits before he managed to hack the control panel properly.

And everything exploded.

* * *

 **Power Levels:**

 **[Mavis Dracula] Lvl: 567**

 **[Fubuki] Lvl: 30**

 **[Johnny] Lvl: 29**

 **[Techno] Final Lvl: 42**

 **[Nihil] Final Lvl: 30**

 **[Cedron] Final Lvl: 98**

 **[Kolt] Final Lvl: 4**

 **[B13948] Final Lvl: 40**


	108. Galactic Hitchhikers

As Mavis watched the window of the _Hotel Transylvania_ , the only thing she could think of was why Techno had to die. She was angry, both at herself and at Techno, for being so dumb. She should've seen it coming from a mile away. Techno was programmed to protect her and only her. She should've predicted that lie…

At the current moment, the _Hotel Transylvania_ was hurtling at 18 million times the speed of light through an empty void, but already, Mavis was feeling the ship begin to slow down. Her telekinetic shove could only last so long before it slowed down. Next to her, Johnny was watching her nervously. In the corner, Fubuki was still unconscious.

After a few moments, Johnny finally broke the silence, "Do you think it was worth it?" he asked, watching Mavis closely, "do you think destroying the ship was worth it? Worth...surviving? Mavis, answer me…"

Mavis paused for a moment, "Techno died…" she said slowly, "it's never going to be worth it...at least he went down destroying _them_. Cedron's disgusting religion. The universe is better without them, after all. I don't even know what to do anymore, without Techno…"

Johnny shifted uncomfortably, "Well...ending an entire _culture_ …."

"Johnny," Mavis interrupted him before he could continue, "there is a difference between a good culture and a bad culture. The bad ones can burn. The good ones can prevail. But…" Mavis didn't know how to feel. Her endless days, fighting in space, had made her lose the capability of feeling sadness anymore. Even so, she knew what she was going to say, "there are no cultures left anymore."

Johnny nodded slowly, "I just checked the control panel," he said, "we're heading towards a galaxy that has a large amount of radio signals coming out from it. Hopefully, they have a decent amount of intelligient life, so we could...work out what to do next…"

Mavis was silent. Johnny leaned over, kissing her, catching Mavis off guard. It felt weird. It's been a while since Mavis kissed Johnny. Even so, she held it for a full ten seconds, before finally breaking it. Johnny sighed, "as we've said before," he grinned a little, "as long as we're together, I don't care how many people die. I don't care how many people suffer. We'll always survive."

Mavis smiled lightly, "Yeah," she murmured, "I'm…" Mavis paused. She forgot what the word was. "I'm _sleepy_.". The word "sleepy" had almost been forgotten by Mavis. There's been so much fighting lately that she's never seen the need to sleep whatsoever. Johnny, however, understood. He nodded, "Go and get some rest," he said, "I'll tell you if anything interesting happens."

Mavis nodded glumly. She quickly kissed Johnny again, then walked to the back of the _Hotel Transylvania_ , where she tucked herself into one of the luxury bedrooms. Immediately, she fell asleep.

* * *

In the Chronos Galaxy, about 123,000 light years away from Mavis, Johnny, and Fubuki, Josiah Gibbs was working in his space observatory, which was in orbit around the planet of Ultimatus. Using a highly-advanced telescope that used Virridium, a rare, highly reflective glass-like element, Josiah was able to view planets, galaxies, and other celestial bodies close up from trillions of light years away.

Josiah's main profession, however, was Theoretical Mathematical philosophy. His was the greatest mathematician to ever exist in his galaxy, inventing over 700,000 formulas and hypotheses, as well as formulating ways to solve equations faster and with more accuracy. His main job, however, was to build the Galvanor.

The Galvanor. The most advanced supercomputer in the entire galaxy. When it's completed, it would be able to literally hold the source code of the universe. However fantastic this may seem, however, Josiah wasn't a fan of it. At all. He was a pacifist, but the people who he worked for were practically warlords. They wished to use the Galvanor for their own purposes: to eliminate threats and destroy enemy worlds.

As Josiah went back to writing his book on theoretical astronomy ( _The Universe: An explanation on why it's a truncated Octahedron)_ , he peered back into his telescope, to take another glance at the rest of the universe. As he was doing this, one of his computers began beeping. Josiah frowned, scooting over to the computer and taking a look at it. The computer had picked up something, about a hundred light years away from the Chronos Galaxy.

The readings of the object were incredible. It had the equivalent force of 14 magnetars, along with a massive well of energy at its very center. Josiah immediately recognized the object as a relatively large neutron star, or a normal-sized magnetar, which was more likely. However, the magnetic readings were completely off-the-charts. Getting remotely near it would scramble radio waves to an extreme extent.

But at the same time, Josiah had to get to it. Neutron stars and Magnetars could provide the magnetism that he needed to run the Galvanor. It was one of the few major problems Josiah had with his current design of the Galvanor.

Josiah pressed a button on the side panel, "Get me a neutron star capture drone," he said, "make sure it's the most advanced model…..yes, yes, that one….okay, thanks." he lifted his finger from the panel, turning back to the computer screen. This is exactly what he needed to complete his project.

* * *

Johnny was watching the windows of the _Hotel Transylvania_ , when he heard the doors to the bridge slide open. He turned around in time to see Mavis walk through the doors. Her usual black shirt was clean and shiny again, and her hair was brushed back. She smelled like shampoo.

"Just came from the shower," said Mavis, walking up to Johnny, "what's been going on? I only came out here 'cause my extrasensory perception was shooting danger signals to me. Anything fishy happening?". Johnny shook his head, "Nah," he said, "everything's been fine here. I've been watching the scanners."

Mavis frowned. She was sure that she had sensed something. She was about to turn back to the door, when she felt it yet again. A pang of danger. Something was approaching them at light speed. Instantly, Mavis grabbed the control panel, frantically pressing buttons, forcing the entire _Hotel Transylvania_ to bank left, right as a squad of drones appeared right next to the ship, coming out of warp.

"Woah!" Johnny stumbled back a little, "what was that?" he asked, "should we open fire? I don't see any weapons on them…"

Mavis's extrasensory perception was calming down. These drones had no weapons. They were a maintenance drone of some kind. There was a pause, and suddenly, a larger ship appeared, this one about the size of a football field, with four guns on each side of it. A second later, the control panel began beeping, as the warpship began to send them requests for a communications channel to be opened.

Mavis opened up the channel, and immediately, a voice came through.

 _What is your ship ID and pass? How did you get your hands on such technology?_

Mavis paused, then decided to take this into her own advantage, "This is the _Hotel Transylvania_ ," she said, "we're a...group of explorers from another galaxy. We were approaching the galaxy nearest to our home world, and this happened to be it."

There was a silence, then the voice came back on on the other end of the communications channel, _Um...very well then. Please stand by as we escort your ship to our galaxy. We have orders to bring you to Josiah, our chief scientist. He thought that this ship was a neutron star for some reason._

Mavis blinked. So these guys came here because they thought that the ship was a neutron star? That was quite possible. After all, the magnetic field of Johnny was probably enough to make them seem like a neutron star to anyone out of view.

Mavis allowed the _Hotel Transylvania_ to be caught within a tractor beam by the warship. Soon enough, they were back in warp. While they were in warp, Mavis felt Johnny walk up behind her, "Mavis, you think that these guys are as nice as they sound? What if they end up trying to kill us? We shouldn't have trusted them."

Mavis sighed, "I put that into consideration," she said, "if they do try to betray us, then they won't stand a chance against me or you. Let's just hope that Fubuki regains consciousness before we arrive at their galaxy.". That was when Mavis realized just how bad of a situation Fubuki was in. When she woke up, she wouldn't know where they were, and Mavis would have to tell her that Kolt was dead….

Mavis tensed up, "We're here." she suddenly said. In front of them, they suddenly came out of warp, flying over a small, grey planet. In orbit around the planet was a small platform with telescopes mounted on it. The warship docked there, and an air terminal connected the ship with the hangar bays.

The air terminal opened up, and a dozen soldiers filed through, their weapons raised. Mavis and Johnny both raised their hands in surrender, but quickly realized that these soldiers wouldn't be a match either way. They didn't even have armor on. Most of them wore what looked like kevlar armor and carried basic rifles and pistols.

Behind them, a short, quizzical looking man wearing a white suit scrambled through the line of soldiers, "Put your damn weapons down," he snapped at them, "these guys are our first possible piece of extragalactic contact. We don't want to scare them too much, do we?"

Mavis smirked a little. As if this guy even knew what he was talking about.

The man walked up to Mavis, shaking her hand fervently, "Welcome!" he said happily. He then turned to Johnny, also shaking his hand, then saw Fubuki. Immediately, a solemn look crossed his face, "Oh dear…" he murmured, "is that one in need of medical service? What happened to her?"

Mavis glanced at Johnny, "She's...uh...unconscious," said Mavis, "she accidently hit her head over a ramp in the back." it was a pathetic excuse, but the man bought it easily, "Oh...that's unfortunate," he said, "anyways, my name is Josiah, the chief mathematical researcher of the Gordion Empire."

Mavis and Johnny both nodded respectfully. Neither of them really wanted to get in a fight with anyone right now. "My name's Mavis," said Mavis, "and his name's Johnny." she ended, pointing to Johnny. "The one who's knocked out is Fubuki."

"I see," Josiah watched them quizzically, "follow me." he said, "we have much to discuss about your untimely arrival."

Mavis nodded slowly. In the back, two soldiers tenderly grabbed Fubuki, and lifted her up, bringing her through the air terminal. Mavis and Johnny quickly followed, with Josiah in front of them, who was talking in his tiny voice.

"This station is my home," he began, "it's a research facility, for astrophysics and mathematics. It's usually only me, my students, and my guards who live here. We rarely get any visitors. Your arrival truly does bring us a great deal of opportunity. If I may ask you, how did you reach such levels of energy on your ship?"

Mavis glanced at Johnny, "We...uh...it's a common thing back from where we come from," said Mavis, "everyone has an engine like that in our galaxy. It's called a draconian core, and it's made of elements that are found from our galaxy. We don't know if you guys have draconian here…"

"Really now?" Josiah seemed legitimately interested, "how fascinating. And what about the magnetism that was on board your ship? Such technologies are integral to the work that I'm doing right now. I _must_ know how you do it."

"Uh...the magnetism comes from the engines as well," said Mavis, "it's a side effect of the energy that is released from the engines…"

Josiah tilted his head, "That's interesting," he said, "anyways, under general protocol, I'm supposed to tell my superiors of your arrival. They will be most pleased with you, and will be very happy to meet you, I am sure of it."

Mavis and Johnny both nodded, feigning honor. But at the same time, they both gave each other sideways glances. They both knew what the other was thinking. Everything that's happened so far, from Josiah's cheery mood, to the seemingly harmlessness of the soldiers, pointed to only one thing.

This looked like a trap.


	109. The Worst Timing

Josiah slid his key card into the card slot that was to the side of his door. Immediately, the door opened. He walked through, with Mavis and Johnny following him. By now, its been a few minutes since they've left the _Hotel Transylvania_. Josiah was still in the process of his tour, which was actually pretty interesting, to Johnny.

"This is my private observatory," said Josiah, "I built this telescope a few years ago...this is my work on astrophysics and mathematical research, over here...and over there's my bedroom. You guys can actually stay in the guest room for now, which is right over here….", Josiah led them through a set of doors to the side of the observatory, and they were suddenly in a perfectly circular room. There was a bed, a table, a shower, and some windows that looked out into space.

After they came out from the guest rooms, Josiah showed them the lounge, the research facility, the storage room, the emergency escape hatches, the backup observatory, and the laboratory, which was to the side of the observatory. It wasn't a large facility, as the entire thing could probably fit within a football field, but it was certainly impressive.

Josiah himself seemed very happy with having visitors. He was bouncing around like a child as he showed them every corner of the area. It made Mavis kind of sad actually. She missed that kind of happiness. It almost made her want to go back in time…..

Mavis blinked. She _should_ want to go back in time, right?

Before she could figure out what she was thinking, a ship suddenly warped in right in front of the research facility. As soon as it did, Mavis felt danger signals shoot up her spine. This ship was massive, armed with huge gun batteries, and was painted bright red. Mavis stepped back a little, "Who is that?" she asked, a little tense.

Josiah sighed, "That's...um...my superiors," Mavis quickly noted the way he didn't sound too enthusiastic about them, "I had to tell them that you were arriving. Protocol, you see. They just want to meet you and see if we could talk for a few moments. Extragalactic contact isn't something we see everyday, you know."

Mavis saw the air terminal extend out, connecting the massive warship to the research facility. The warship was at least three times larger than the facility itself, and did not seem normal for a person who seemed as peaceful as Josiah to work under. But Mavis did notice how Josiah didn't seem to like the people on board the warship…

The doors slid open, and immediately, a convoy of soldiers marched out. But these soldiers didn't look like regular soldiers that Mavis had seen earlier. These soldiers looked like the ones on Cedron's ship. They wore exceedingly thick power armor, had masks, and carried huge high-explosive plasma rifles.

As the soldiers marched through, they split their ranks in order to let a tall man walk through. He was at least seven feet tall, and wore head-to-toe white armor. Mavis noted the energy sword that was strapped to his belt. "Josiah, I've been telling you to get replacements for those soldiers for ages! Why don't you do it, eh?"

Josiah shifted a little, "I've told you," he said gloomily, "I prefer natural soldiers who actually have a sense of cognition rather than your," he looked distastefully at the line of silent, power-armored soldiers, "biologically engineered monstrosities. Haven't I told you that nobody truly poses a threat to us?"

"Enough," the leader waved his hands, and Josiah stopped talking immediately, "I didn't come here to quarrel about whether or not we should decrease the size of our military. I came here to see the extragalactic explorers who came here today, according to a report written by you. Where are they?"

Mavis and Johnny both stepped forward, "That would be me," said Mavis, "this is Johnny, my...husband, and my name is Mavis. We came from a different galaxy as explorers.". The leader smiled a little, "That is good," he said, "very good! My name is Hector, the leader of the Gordion Empire. Your arrival brings us new possibilities…"

Hector motioned to his guard, "Leave us." he ordered, and immediately, the guards retreated back into the shadows, still watching Mavis suspiciously. Hector began walking down the hallway, Mavis, Johnny, and Josiah following him closely. Mavis was most interested in Hector, since he seemed to be the person with the most influence, and was therefore the biggest threat to her as well.

As Hector walked down the hallway, he spent his time asking Mavis and Johnny questions about where they came from, why they came, and what species they were. Most of these questions were answered by Johnny, since Mavis had a limited knowledge of astronomy. They quickly came up with a background story. They were from a faraway galaxy, came here as exploration units, and met Josiah in the process.

"Fascinating," said Hector, after Johnny completely fabricated this story, "would you be able to point out the galaxy that you came from? Josiah, you _do_ have the most advanced astronomical research facility in the galaxy, surely you could find it for us?"

"I could," said Josiah, "but it would take some time. My team was just using it, so we would have to recalibrate the telescope a little…"

The four of them walked into the observatory, where Josiah began to type in commands into the console. Immediately, the telescope above them began to spin around, pointing towards the sky. On the computer screen, a progress bar showed up, and quickly went up to 100%.

Immediately, an image appeared on the screen. At first, it was very pixelated, but slowly came into focus. Mavis watched the screen anxiously, and immediately noticed something wrong. Something very wrong. In the corner of the screen, there were dials and bar graphs. These bar graphs showed many things, from entropy, to energy, to gravitational pull, to concentration of certain substances.

The energy bar was at 9,922,263,989,192% normal level.

Mavis gulped. Hector was also staring, his mouth slightly open. At first, Mavis thought of making a run for it, and was actually about to, before-

"Ah, there we go," said Josiah, unplugging something from the computer. Immediately, the energy percentage dropped down to normal level. Mavis blinked. Josiah didn't seemed fazed whatsoever. He quickly walked over, "As you can see, they appeared to have come from this galaxy…"

The screen zoomed in on a galaxy to the left on the one that Mavis and Johnny had actually arrived in. Mavis frowned. The energy levels seen before matched what her extrasensory perception had told her about the self-destruction of the _Destructor_. Why had Josiah cancelled it out?

Hector, however, still seemed a little confused, "What was that?" he asked, "why were the energy levels up so high beforehand?"

"Our telescopes were just recalibrating," said Josiah smoothly, even though Mavis knew that this was false, "They always go that high whenever we reset our telescopes, it's really not a very uncommon thing to happen."

"I see…" Hector glanced at the galaxy that the telescope was now focused on, "so is this the galaxy that you guys came from?" he asked, pointing, "this is your home galaxy?"

Johnny and Mavis both nodded fervently, "Yeah," they both said, "that's exactly where we came from."

Hector nodded, satisfied, "Okay," he said, "so are you planning on going back? Or are you planning on staying here…"

For the next hour, Johnny and Mavis were flung into another interviewing session by Hector, who asked them dozens of more questions. After a while, Mavis began to understand who Hector truly was. He kept on referring to other nations that lived in the Chronos Galaxy as "inferior", and "stupid", even going as far to call one particular empire by the name of the Orks a bunch of "Mindless animals.". It was also obvious that Josiah didn't like Hector. He kept on rolling his eyes whenever Hector threw another insult at one of his opposing nations.

Finally, Hector decided to leave, retreating into a separate guest room at the side of the research facility. After he was finally in his room, Mavis noticed Josiah quickly walk back into his observatory, shutting the door behind him.

Johnny yawned, retreating back into their guest room which Josiah had introduced them to. Mavis, however, knew that Josiah wasn't only going into his observatory because he was tired. She quickly walked in as well, to find Josiah staring at the computer screen, scrolling through images. As Mavis watched, she saw a picture of the Milky Way come up.

"Hey." Mavis spoke from the shadows, causing Josiah to jump, shutting off the computer and sending some papers flying over the edge of his table, "what're you doing?"

Josiah looked terrified. He scrambled back, grabbing a gun from the side of his table and pointing it at Mavis. Mavis noticed that his hands were shaking, "Who are you?" he asked, "your galaxy….you came from a galaxy that was destroyed! It blew up! You would have to travel faster than the speed of light to escape that explosion! Are you...are you here to destroy this galaxy as well?"

Mavis paused. Josiah was smarter than she had bargained for. "Look," she began, "I don't know what you think you saw, but-"

Josiah blinked, "You-You're trying to mind wipe me!" he scrambled back, surprising Mavis, "what are you?"

Mavis was both impressed and kind of frightened. How had Josiah known that she was trying to mind wipe him? Nobody else had ever been able to tell when Mavis was wiping their memory. Nobody else except Josiah, who was now pointing the gun right at Mavis's face.

Mavis approached him slowly, holding up her hands in surrender, "You're overreacting," she said calmly, "put the damn gun down, Josiah! Do you really think that we're the bad guys?". Mavis knew that Josiah didn't want to kill her. There must've been a reason why Josiah covered for her and Johnny in the observatory. Because he wanted to protect them.

Josiah fired the gun, but the bullet didn't come close to Mavis. She deflected it, sending it ricocheting off a nearby wall. She telekinetically grabbed the gun, and bent it into a U-shape, tossing it aside and crushing it. Before Josiah could run, Mavis had frozen him telekinetically.

"Listen," hissed Mavis, "I'm not the bad guy here. I'm just trying to survive. I wasn't the one who blew up that galaxy. I was just the one that survived."

Josiah looked horrified. He struggled, but he only had brains, not brawn. His weak strength was nothing against the iron bonds of the telekinetic grip that Mavis held him in.

But that was when it began to happen. Alarms began blaring, and a voice on the intercom said, "Warning: multiple large, celestial-scale objects moving out of hyperspace, please take caution immediately.". Mavis glanced at the computer, right in time to see a dozen huge _things_ come out of hyperspace on one of the many computer screens.

It was a large cube, and quickly unraveled, unleashing dozens of warships and fighters out into the open space. Mavis recognized the model of these ships immediately, and it instantly filled her with dread. These ships had the symbol of the Cyrdian Empire painted on their sides. And they looked pretty damn ready to fight.

Outside, researchers and scientists were running around. Soldiers were in a panic. Mavis heard yelling, as Hector came out of his guest room, looking around confusedly. The video clip of the Cyrdian Cubes coming out of hyperspace were now being transmitted onto pretty much every single screen in the research facility, and as soon as Hector saw it, his eyes landed on Mavis.

And Mavis heard exactly what he said next.

"Soldiers, get her," said Hector, pointing at Mavis, "she and her friends must've been the first of this alien invasion."

* * *

Crusader-Class Cyrdian Titan

Height: 4 miles

Weaponry: 30-foot rapid fire energy incinerators, 30-foot flamethrowers (Range: 17 miles), plasma blades, incinerator drills, drone bays, automated destructor-class pulse launchers, 70-foot rapid-fire thermonuclear missile launchers, 60-foot rapid fire thermonuclear ground-blast missile launchers

Maximum Speed: Mach 9

Flight: Possible

Deployed: From Orbit

Crew: Minimum of 1 crew members, suggested 2

Primary Purpose: Bring utter destruction to anything that opposes it

Cyrdian Operation Doomsday-

Operation Doomsday is an executive-ordered operation, eligible for only the leader to confirm. Operation Doomsday should only be enacted if there is a legitimate threat to the entire galaxy as a whole. Operation Doomsday makes use of Cyrdian Cubes, twelve massive cubes that were constructed by the cyrdian empire to hold massive amounts of firepower and to support the Cyrdian Population. Operation doomsday makes use of the instantaneous matter replicators, which would teleport every Cyrdian citizen into these cubes at maximum of a few seconds, and automatically jump to warp towards the nearest galaxy. Once the cubes reach the galaxy it warped to, it would begin the conquering of that galaxy, for repopulation of the Cyrdian Empire.


	110. The Galvanor

Mavis's first reaction was to fight. Before the soldiers could even get close to her, she let loose a telekinetic wave, blasting back everyone in the room. A few seconds later, more bullets began flying at her, some of them hitting her, but having no effect, as usual. Mavis quickly noticed something about these bullets in particular. They had something inside of them. With a chill, Mavis realized that these bullets were poisoned, but her body seemed to be immune to it.

Mavis sprinted, vanishing from sight entirely. She tore through a line of soldiers, sending them flying back, going through a hallway, into the observatory, and smashing open the door to the guest room that Johnny was in. Behind it, Mavis found Johnny hiding in a corner. He quickly got up when he saw Mavis, "They found out, didn't they?" he asked hurriedly, "they know who we are?"

Mavis nodded, "C'mon!" she yelled, "we gotta get outta here! Let's get Fubuki and run for it!"

The two of them rocketed down the hallway, smashing their way through another line of soldiers. Mavis forced her way into the infirmary, and quickly saw a dozen doctors, scrambling around. There were injured and sick people all over the place, and in the corner, Fubuki was lying, still unconscious, on a bed.

Mavis grabbed Fubuki, turning to Johnny, right as the doors opened again. "GET THEM!" yelled Hector's voice from somewhere outside the door. Bullets came flying at them, forcing Johnny behind a medical bed. Mavis used her telekinesis to choke the enemy soldiers to death, throwing their lifeless bodies against the walls easily.

Hector drew an energy blade, turning to Mavis to face her, but before he could even make a move, Mavis had grabbed his energy blade, and had sliced his stomach open. Hector quickly collapsed, blood spilling everywhere. Mavis then threw his energy blade, impaling another soldier straight through the chest with it.

Johnny was doing just as well against the soldiers. By now, his magnetic powers were being utilized at their highest potential that Mavis had ever seen Johnny do. Lightning crackled, and electricity hissed, as tendrils of lightning shot out of Johnny's hands, burning and killing anything that came in his path. The enemy soldier's guns and suits began to malfunction, and the lights began to flicker in and out.

Mavis quickly spotted the hangar bay, straight ahead of them. She yelled to Johnny, indicating to him to get to the hangar bay, and to get a ship. Johnny nodded, lifting Fubuki's body magnetically and bringing her behind him into the hangar bay, killing four soldiers in the process. Johnny quickly made his way over to the _Hotel Transylvania_ , which was still parked in the hangar bay, and dragged Fubuki onto it. He then prepped the engines, right as Mavis came through the hangar bay as well, with a dozen soldiers on her tail.

As Johnny watched, Mavis suddenly spun around, blasting all the soldiers who were following her into the wall, smashing them straight through the solid steel plating, and into a completely separate room. However, what Johnny did not notice was Mavis's extrasensory perception, which was picking up something very strange from Josiah and Hector, who were behind their legions of soldiers.

As Mavis continued to kill soldier after soldier, she was also listening to her extrasensory perception, and what she heard surprised her very much.

"Their ship is the key to solving all of our problems!" Hector was saying, "their energy core and energy buildup is just enough to power the Galvanor! Can you imagine how powerful our nation would be if we could get access to such energy?"

Josiah's reply came in quickly, "Yes," he said, "but we have to worry about getting our hands on that source of energy first. Can't you see? Wherever Mavis and Johnny came from, they are clearly technologically superior to us! Their Draconian Core had enough energy emanating from it in a second to power a sun for a billion years! And also, you probably shouldn't be talking right now, your stomach-"

Mavis winced, as she remembered how she had sliced open Hector's stomach. But whatever species Hector was, he seemed to have some sort of natural healing ability, because he seemed unfazed by the pain that he should've been feeling at that point.

"Nonsense," said Hector, "Josiah, I need you to continue work on the Galvanor. Right now, I'll try to capture these monsters, and force them to tell us how their Draconian Core worked. This is the key to defeating our enemies, and ending our problems, all in the blink of an eye! This is great news indeed, Josiah…"

Mavis cut out the extrasensory perception right then, partly because she had heard enough, but mostly because a soldier decided that that was a nice time to throw a grenade at Mavis. Mavis was instantly engulfed in a ball of flame, but emerged, completely untouched. She quickly threw the soldier who threw the grenade against a wall, killing him, and jumped on board the _Hotel Transylvania_.

"Let's go!" she yelled to Johnny, who was at the control panel, "jump to warp, now!"

Right as Johnny hit the warp lever, Mavis felt an explosion at the back of the ship, as a rocket collided with the back of the _Hotel Transylvania_ , and the ship immediately jumped to warp directly after that.

* * *

Mavis and Johnny sat in silence at the front of the ship for the first few seconds. After a while, Mavis decided to break the silence by asking Johnny, "Do you think they'll pursue us?" she asked, "I mean...they should concentrate their efforts on defeating the Cyrdian Empire, right?"

"I don't know," Johnny sighed, turning, "great, just another group of people who want us dead. Why can't people realize that we're _not_ the bad guys?"

"Well, people are dumb," Mavis replied dully, "anyways, what do we do now? I heard Josiah and Hector talking about some interesting stuff...something about something that they called the Galvanor. I don't know what it exactly is, but it sounds pretty powerful, because they need the full energy output of the Draconian Core for it to work."

Johnny looked up, "The _full_ energy output?" he asked, "Are you sure about that? The Draconian Core can produce _alot_ of energy. Like, enough energy to run a sun for a few trillion years. What type of machine are they working on that requires such amounts of energy? What did you call it? A Galvanor?"

Mavis nodded slowly, "Yeah," she said, "and it sounded important as well….they were talking about how it could solve all of their problems, and they even said that they would pursue us just to get their hands on a Draconian Core."

"Well…" Johnny paused, "that really sucks." he mumbled, throwing a pillow across the room, and plopping down on a couch. Now that he thought of it, he really did appreciate the luxury and fineness of the silk couch. Anything that was rich or luxury now had a new sort of appreciation from Johnny, as he realized how precious these sorts of things truly were.

Mavis leaned down, kissing Johnny. "Don't you miss the times we had before all of this shit happened?" she asked, "don't you remember the times, when we could just sit down on the rooftop and look at the stars without fear of getting killed?"

Johnny sighed, "I do," he mumbled, "but...I don't know if I can accept that type of life anymore. The war has turned me into...I don't even know anymore. I've killed so many people, I've done so much...going back to such a peaceful life doesn't seem right anymore."

Mavis didn't respond immediately. She knew that Johnny was right though. The war had turned her into a killer. She's killed probably more people than anyone else had in the history of the universe. She was stronger than anyone else who she's ever met. By now, the only excitement Mavis got was the excitement of battle. The only relief she got was the relief of surviving another day, and the only worry she had was the next day. Mavis didn't want to admit it, but she couldn't accept peace anymore. Without battle, her life was nothing. Nothing, except-

"Johnny." Mavis's voice was barely above a whisper. She drew nearer to him, snuggling up by his side, surprising Johnny, "We don't have anything to worry about," she said confidently, "as long as you're alive, I'll be happy, you'll be happy, and there's nothing else in the world that I would give a damn about."

Johnny smiled, kissing Mavis's forehead, "Same," he murmured, "tell you what, Mavis, why don't we land in an area where the Cyrdian Empire also lands? That way, we can beat up the Cyrdian Empire, and prove to the Gordian Empire that we're friendly. Maybe that would show them that we don't mean them any harm?"

Mavis nodded sleepily, "Sure…" she murmured. Without warning, she suddenly went at Johnny with another kiss. This one was deeper and more passionate than the last one. "I love you so much," murmured Mavis, "you're literally everything to me, Johnny…"

Johnny smiled a little, "I think we're both everything to each other," he said softly, allowing Mavis's head to fall onto his lap, "honestly, you're the one who's more badass….I can't think of a cooler person to have as a wife, seriously. Who has a telekinetic vampire wife? Not alot of people, believe me…"

"Oh, stop it," Mavis punched Johnny's arm lightly, "stop trying to make me feel good," she said, "we're both awesome, alright? I just feel as if...I don't know...we've been fighting a lot lately, and I've felt as if I've forgotten what it means to actually live a life. You know, a life at all. You're the only thing that's holding me back from death right now…"

It was true. Johnny was the only thing between Mavis and suicide.

Johnny sighed, resting his shoulders on Mavis's head, "Don't think about that stuff right now," he muttered, "I'm gonna sleep for now...goodnight, Mavis…"

"Goodnight." Mavis felt Johnny fall asleep a few seconds later, snoring peacefully. She soon fell asleep as well.

* * *

Josiah was typing in commands onto his console for the Galvanor. He was almost there. It's only been a few hours after Mavis and Johnny made their escape from the research facility, but even so, that wasn't going to stop Josiah from trying to build the Galvanor. As Josiah plugged in another cable, he glanced at the book he was using to program the Galvanor, and quickly read what was on the page:

 _Fluctuations in the impulsive holoscope may result in a multilateral linear wiring. To fix this, the metaphasic polarity emitter must be realigned with the graviton enhancer and promethean flux chords. This should make the multi-isolinear time banks divert energy to the converter assembly, which would fix the titranium computer systems and stabilize the magnesite-nitron subspace pulse-wave frequencies._

That was pretty easy. Josiah quickly realigned a few wires, while typing in a few commands into the console. A few seconds later, the drive that he was working on for the Galvanor quickly came to life. Almost immediately, a loud humming noise began coming from the Galvanor. The Galvanor itself was a small, orb-like ball of wires and plating. It stood in the center of an absolute vacuum, and contained the source code to the universe.

There were a few seconds of silence, before finally-

 _Galvanor 1.0….Online…._

"YES!" Josiah pumped his fist into the air. He had finally done it. Finally completed his job. Despite not liking the uses it would have, there was still a certain satisfaction to creating such a powerful supercomputer. But even so, there was still a lot to be done about the computer. The biggest problem was the lack of energy input.

 _Control of the Galvanor will require sixteen trillion times the current energy input. For now, access to the Galvanor is completely random._

Well, that sucked. That meant that whenever someone tried to do something with the Galvanor, it would instead just do something random, rather than do what the user wanted it to do.

There was only one place in the universe where Josiah could possibly find such a sustainable source of energy for the Galvanor. And he knew exactly where to find it.

Mavis and Johnny's Draconian Core was his next target.


	111. Gamechanger

Mavis woke up to the sound of rustling. Immediately, her eyes flew open. Her hands immediately began to glow a dark aura of purple. She telekinetically leapt up, going so fast that Johnny, whose arms she was just in, didn't even move. In front of her, was none other than Fubuki. She looked a little weary and tired, but otherwise okay.

"Fubuki…" Mavis immediately dropped back onto the ground, "you should've woken me up," she said uneasily, "it's dangerous times right now...and anyways, you must have so many questions right now, being knocked out for a few days…"

Fubuki didn't seem very fazed at all about her surroundings. She asked one thing, and one thing only. "Where's Kolt?" she asked, her eyes glowing a little as she said this. Mavis immediately felt her blood come to her face when she asked this. What was she going to say? Kolt was dead. He was killed by the sniper in the _Destructor_ …

"Fubuki…" Mavis began slowly, "Kolt...he didn't make it...he was killed on board the _Destructor_ , by the sniper that you saw...there was nothing I could even do about it...I'm so sorry…"

Fubuki was silent. Mavis saw tears begin to form in her eyes. It struck her as very strange. Now that she thought of it, she's never actually seen Fubuki cry. Never seen her cry until now, at least. Mavis cursed. She should know how to empathize more with Fubuki. She's felt Johnny's death before. She knew what losing a loved one felt like.

But this time, it was different. Something else came from Fubuki. Mavis sensed it immediately. It wasn't sadness. It was anger.

"I thought you would save him…" Fubuki's voice was trembling with anger, as if she was holding back something really nasty, "I thought that you would protect him...you _told_ me that you would protect him! Why didn't you save him? You had the capability to do so!"

"Fubuki…" Mavis's voice was also trembling now, "I couldn't do anything. He was already gone...even if I had tried, there wouldn't be anything that I would've been able to do. He was dead as soon as the bullet touched him! My life force powers can only keep people alive, they can't bring people back from the dead…"

"You…" Fubuki began to cry now, "you l-let him die! You LIE!"

Mavis felt a telekinetic force suddenly grab the ship, and force it out of hyperspace completely. This both surprised Mavis, but also made her angry. "What the hell?" she asked, "what're you doing, trying to get us killed? The people in this galaxy want us dead, Fubuki!"

"It doesn't matter!" screamed Fubuki, "you let Kolt die! I'll never forgive you for that!"

Mavis was suddenly blasted back telekinetically. This time, she fought back. She stopped herself, using her momentum as a carrying force to drive herself into Fubuki, kicking her to the side and knocking her down. "Are you on my side or not?" yelled Mavis, "Fubuki, you know me! I'm not a bad guy in this war!"

Fubuki lunged at Mavis, bringing her hands out, which now glowed with two fireballs, right as-

"Enough." Johnny's voice came out of the darkness, startling both Mavis and Fubuki, who weren't paying any attention to him. A tendril of white electricity flew out of Johnny's hands, intercepting Fubuki midway, and sending her flying back. Before she hit the ground, however, Fubuki telekinetically lifted herself, and turned to face Mavis, who was now backed by Johnny.

Fubuki hissed, "I will have my revenge!" she growled at Mavis, "you will _both_ die for what you did to Kolt!". With that, Fubuki phased through the nearest wall, and jumped to slow warp, vanishing from sight instantly.

Mavis silently stared at the wall that Fubuki had vanished through. She didn't know how to feel. Numb. Shocked. Dumbstruck. Surprised. Angry. Johnny placed a hand on Mavis's shoulder, "It's not your fault," he murmured, "you didn't do anything wrong, Mavis...come on...sit down...over here…"

Mavis sat down at a couch in the corner of the room. Fubuki had become such an integral part of their group that Mavis had completely began to take her for granted. She never considered what would happen if Fubuki turned _against_ her though. She thought that Fubuki was loyal enough to her and Johnny. But apparently she was wrong.

The _Hotel Transylvania_ suddenly spoke up, _Warning: ships coming out of hyperspace_.

Mavis jumped up, cursing. She had forgotten that they weren't in hyperspace. If they weren't in hyperspace, then that meant that they could easily be tracked and hunted. "Hotel, jump to warp, go to the nearest star system which the Cyrdian Empire is invading!" she yelled, right as a dozen warships warped in behind them.

The ship instantly jumped to warp, but three seconds later, came out of warp, in a completely different setting. Apparently, they were _very_ close to where the Cyrdian Empire was invading, because according to Mavis's extrasensory perception, the place they were just in was only a few light days away from where they were now.

And she immediately saw the battle. The Cyrdian Empire was winning for sure. In front of them, the second planet from the sun was being invaded by one of the Cyrdian Cubes. The cube itself was about the size of a small moon, with huge warships coming out of it, and massive mechs falling from it onto the planet.

"Come on!" yelled Mavis, steering the _Hotel Transylvania_ straight for the planet, "we can show the Gordian Empire that we're on their side! Let's go blow up some of these mechs and prove to them that we can work together! Maybe that way, we don't have to fight 24/7."

They entered the atmosphere, cutting through some fluffy blue clouds, and quickly saw the battle raging below them. On one side, a fortification of trenches and walls, with soldiers and tanks firing as much as they could at the Cyrdian Forces, who were advancing steadily. The Cyrdians had soldiers and air superiority, but their main asset was their Crusader-class Cyrdian Titan. It stood so tall that nobody could even see its head, and fired hundreds of missiles at the enemy fortresses. Whenever it stepped forward, it crushed a couple hundred Gordian Soldiers under its foot.

"Hotel, stay up here, wait for our signal to pick us up!" yelled Johnny, "Come on, Mavis, let's get going at beat these guys up!"

The doors to the side opened up, and Johnny and Mavis jumped out into the open air, free-falling. It was a feeling that Johnny had almost forgotten, and kind of made him nostalgic for Earth. He remembered all the times, when he would jump out of the _Death's Bane_ , and fall towards the Earth, and when Mavis was there to always catch him before he landed…

Mavis landed before Johnny, smashing into the ground right in front of the first line of trenches, scaring the crap out of the soldiers who were fighting there. "What're you doing!" Mavis heard one of the soldiers scream, "ma'am, you gotta get outta here, before-", before he could even finish his sentence, the enemy soldiers reached the trenches. Mavis turned around, and snapped her fingers.

Instantly, every soldier in the front line (about 3 million of them), were instantly killed, as Mavis's life force abilities kicked in. The sky was temporarily filled with a black aura-the life force of those who Mavis just killed, which streamed into Mavis, empowering her. Behind Mavis, Johnny landed on the ground as well, "Well, what're we waiting for?" he yelled, "let's kick some ass!"

The enemy soldiers were charging again, several of them firing their weapons. This time, Mavis left a few for Johnny and the soldiers. She accelerated to seven million times the speed of light, cutting through the enemy lines like a knife in butter, killing anything with a fifteen feet radius of her except for Johnny. Johnny blasted electricity at anything he saw, frying the soldier's armor and weapons. Behind them, the Gordian Soldiers weren't charging, but were definitely gaining confidence.

"They've done it! They've pushed them back! How are they _doing_ that?"

"Who are they anyways? I've never heard of anyone similar to them even from the military journals….are you sure they're on our side? I mean, they _are_ fighting for us…"

Mavis finished killing the last few Cyrdian Soldiers, and looked up right in time to see a second Crusader-class Titan drop onto the ground directly in front of her. It roared, swiveling its guns down at her, and launching thousands of thermonuclear warheads at her. Luckily, by now, Mavis had made her way to the drop zone of the Cyrdian Empire, which was about five hundred miles away from the Gordian Lines.

Over 7,000 thermonuclear bombs made a direct collision with Mavis, engulfing the place she was in with a huge nuclear explosion. There were a few moments of silence, until finally-

 _Crack_

The Crusader-Class Mech was suddenly blasted back, falling onto the ground, crushing a few mountains and hills that were behind it. Mavis had just punched it, directly at its center, and had moved so fast that the Crusader-class Titan couldn't even keep track of her. Before the Titan could get up again, Mavis had landed on it yet again, and punched it, embedding the titan deeper into the earth. A third punch completely destroyed the titan. But even so, Mavis was impressed by this particular piece of Cyrdian Engineering. According to her extrasensory perception, the Titan had withstood a total of 16 million Yottajoules.

But then Mavis heard it. Screams.

She turned around, right in time to see the other Crusader-Class Titan fire its thermonuclear missiles as well. She saw them fire them directly at the trenches that Johnny was in. Mavis vanished, reappearing right next to Johnny, forming a shield around the entire trench system, right as the thermonuclear missiles collided with the shields.

Instantly, the shield lit up, but held. At least 16 thousand thermonuclear warheads were thrown at Mavis's shield, but they didn't do anything to it. Behind her, Mavis could feel the astonished looks on the soldier's faces. She smiled to herself a little. Being ridiculously overpowered did come with its benefits.

After the thermonuclear missiles stopped firing, Mavis deactivated the shield, and turned to the soldiers, "I'll take care of it." she said. With that, Mavis vanished.

Without warning, above them, the Crusader-Class titan exploded, as one of Mavis's punches collided directly with its face. This time, Mavis actually put a little effort into it, and the head exploded, causing fragments of metal to rain on the soldiers. The Titan itself fell back, destroyed and withered, crushing a few Gordian soldiers as it fell, and creating a massive dust storm.

There was a moment of silence, as the soldiers stared at the fallen titan. Above them, Mavis saw the Cyrdian Cube suddenly open one of its sides, and saw a huge cannon come out of it. The soldiers saw this as well. And they seemed to know what it was, just as much as what Mavis knew.

The Cyrdian Cube fired its last-resort weapon. A huge beam of white light flew at them. Mavis could feel the laser's power. It was enough to destroy a planet the size of Jupiter with one hit. But at the same time, it only traveled at the speed of light. And the speed of light was pretty slow for Mavis.

Before the laser even entered the atmosphere, Mavis formed a shield around the entire planet.

There was a massive _BOOOOM_ , as the entire planet lit up for a second. The entire explosion lasted for a full three minutes, and filled the skies with fire. But nothing penetrates the shields. Nothing at all. Mavis could feel the force of the laser colliding with her shield. It was kind of weak, and disappointed her.

Then the explosion ended. Above them, the Cyrdian Cube warped away. There was a moment of silence, as the soldiers stared, their mouths gaping, at Mavis and Johnny, who were now standing in front of them. There were suddenly cheers, whoops, soldiers running forward to thank Mavis, some of them even dropping to their knees and crying with joy in front of her. Mavis smiled a tiny bit. It did feel good, to help a group of soldiers who were in need.

Mavis went around for the next hour, telekinetically healing as many soldiers as possible. By the end of the day, not a single soldiers was wounded anymore. Mavis heard people talking about her behind her back. One soldier even scrambled up to her.

"Are you a god?" he asked, clearly frightened about the answer, "you...your powers-"

"I'm no god," said Mavis, "I'm nothing compared to god, don't worry."

As Mavis and Johnny watched the soldiers recover, Mavis nudged Johnny in the side, "Do you think we'll be able to gain some sort of respect from the Gordian Empire?" she asked, "d'ya think that they'll regard us as allies to them now? I mean...these soldiers seem pretty damn happy about us."

Johnny grinned, but Mavis saw some doubt in his eyes, "I really hope so," he murmured back, "if not, then we're really going to have to run for it."


	112. Fubuki's Dark Side

After a few hours of looking over the soldiers, making sure that they were alright, Mavis heard one of the soldiers phoning in to Hector, telling them that the planet was safe. Mavis felt Johnny tense at the sound of Hector's name, and didn't blame him, but at the same time, was hopeful that they could finally become allies, and work together. In a universe where everything seemed to be against you, having a few friends was never a bad idea.

But even as she thought of this possibility, Mavis immediately sensed something go wrong. The soldier on the phone glanced at them uneasily, then said through the phone again, "Uh...are you sure, Grand Leader? I mean...she literally just helped us take over an entire planet….what, are you crazy? Kill them? No way in hell we're gonna do that!"

By now, a few soldiers nearby who had heard what the soldier was saying through the phone were glancing at Mavis and Johnny uneasily. Mavis saw one of them grip his gun a little tighter. She turned to Johnny, "We need to be ready to get outta here," she whispered, "I don't know if these guys are gonna turn on us….get the _Hotel Transylvania_ ready."

Johnny nodded, pressing a button on his wrist watch. Techno had crafted the wrist watch for him when they first boarded the _Hotel Transylvania_ , about a week before. When Johnny pressed the button, it would send a signal to the _Hotel Transylvania_ to tell it to be ready to pick them up at any moment. To be quite honest, Johnny wasn't worried about dying, but like Mavis, wanted some allies.

But it did not seem like their lucky day. The soldier who was just on the phone pointed a gun directly at Mavis. Mavis noted that he seemed very scared, "Mavis, you're coming with us." he said, "I just received orders from the Grand Leader to seize you for espionage and attempting to infiltrate the Gordian Empire."

By now, the soldiers around Mavis and Johnny were watching, some of them looking frightened, some looking surprised, and some looking interested. Mavis feigned surprise, "Are you sure?" she asked, "If I recall correctly, I believe that I just saved this damn planet from invasion. You're really gonna shoot me for saving your asses?"

"Yeah, what the hell?" one of the soldiers who Mavis healed walked forward, pointing a gun at the soldier who was just on the phone, "Mavis just saved all of us! If anything, the Grand Leader can go screw himself. He was about to let all of us die on this planet. My loyalty is to Mavis now, anyone who disagrees can screw off."

Slowly, the soldiers began to organize themselves into two armed camps. One side consisted of the people who were still loyal to the Gordian Empire, and the other one consisted of those who were on Mavis's side. The soldier who was just on the phone gulped. It was clear that he didn't want to fight Mavis, after seeing what she was capable of doing.

But they didn't have to wait for long. Above them, a dozen transport ships warped directly into the atmosphere, lowering themselves onto the former battlefield, which was now littered with the remains of the Cyrdian Soldiers who Johnny and Mavis had killed. The back doors opened, and a dozen soldiers ran out. These soldiers were different. Mavis instantly recognized them as the ones that always guarded Hector.

One of the soldiers at the front, who was wearing an armor that was lined with red markings, walked forward to the soldier who just had the phone, "I heard that you survived the attack on your planet," he said, "good job. You are now assigned to sector 149b. We also just received orders from Hector himself to capture _her_."

The soldier pointed at Mavis and Johnny.

Mavis had heard enough. She yelled, blasting the soldiers back with a telekinetic wave. Above them, the _Hotel Transylvania_ materialized, opening fire on the soldiers, blowing them sky-high, not even giving them a chance to react. Johnny flew up, into the _Hotel Transylvania_. Mavis quickly followed, but before she clambered in, she looked behind her and saw the soldiers who were backing her up, now fighting. They were losing.

Mavis dragged herself into the _Hotel Transylvania_ , shutting the doors behind her, and running over to the control panel, typing in commands as fast as possible. The _Hotel Transylvania_ angled upwards, and flew out of the atmosphere, into space. They had just broken the planet's gravitational pull, when suddenly-

 _BOOOM_

 _Engines damaged, warp drive disabled. Self-repair starting._

"You gotta be _kidding_ me!" yelled Mavis, turning, right as a dozen more missiles flew at the _Hotel Transylvania_. All of them were deflected easily by Mavis, but two of them exploded relatively close to the ship. Behind them, a dozen Gordian warships closed in, firing their primary turrets and sending turbo lasers blasting through the hull.

The _Hotel Transylvania_ responded on its own. Four missile pods fired, hitting three of the twelve enemy ships. These missiles packed a much harder punch than what the pilots of those warships were used to, and soon enough, the three warships that were hit all exploded into a massive fireball.

Right as Mavis was about to hurl a few nearby asteroids at the enemy warships, she suddenly saw all the enemy ships stop moving. She was about to ask why that was happening, when she saw Johnny, with his hands outstretched, his eyes closed. He was tampering with the Gordian electronics that were on the warships, forcing the ships to stop moving.

But even as Mavis watched, she knew that Johnny was losing strength quickly. She felt his life force dampening. Mavis decided to make things quick and easy. She telekinetically split a few atoms within each warship, creating nine thermonuclear explosions in each of the warships' bridges. The warships were soon nothing but a pile of ashes.

 _Self Repair Complete, jumping to warp immediately_

And with that, Mavis and Johnny were flung into hyperspace, flying at several times the speed of light towards some unknown location.

As Mavis and Johnny stared at the windows, both of them silently congratulating themselves for surviving another day, Mavis suddenly had a wave of realization hit her in the face. It was only after a few seconds that she figured out what it really was. They had failed their mission.

Mavis couldn't have been more frustrated. She and Johnny had arrived on that planet, right after fighting Fubuki and the Gordian guards in the observatory, turned the tide of an entire battle over a planet, helped save thousands of lives, and destroyed two Crusader-class titans from the Cyrdian Empire. Were the Gordians really that dumb? Were they really willing to believe that Mavis and Johnny were working for the Cyrdians, even after watching them help the Gordians defeat them?

Johnny patted Mavis on the back, quickly kissing her, "Good job…" he murmured, "damn, I'm tired...here, you should sit down a little...you did alot today…" Mavis allowed herself to be steered into the lounge, where Johnny set her down on a couch, and threw a blanket at her, which Mavis wrapped around herself, her eyes glowing softly in the room.

Johnny sat down next to Mavis. "You know, Mavis...you really are strong.". Mavis didn't really even comprehend Johnny's words. She shrugged, "it's pretty awesome." she said lamely, "you know, all those nerds on Earth, who say that power isn't everything...they're wrong. All of them. Power is _everything_ in this universe. You die if you don't have it, and you live if you do."

"Yeah, but...those Crusader Class Titans...you finished them off without even trying today..as if they were nothing. A single one of those things could've easily conquered Earth on its own. Without you, everyone on that planet would've died. You saved lives today, Mavis."

"It was a colossal failure." even as Mavis said this, she knew it was objectively true, "we went there to soften tensions with the Gordian Empire. Now, they want to kill us even more than what they did before. We're even more of a terrorist now than we were back on Earth. All because of some stupid misunderstanding."

Johnny shifted in his seat. His brows furrowed, immediately telling Mavis that Johnny knew something was wrong. "You're not telling me something," said Johnny carefully, "something important. You've been….I don't know, I'm too used to reading your facial expressions."

Mavis sighed, sitting upwards, "I didn't exactly get to telling you this," she began, "but when we left the observatory...you know, before we jumped to hyperspace, I heard something with my extrasensory perception. Josiah and Hector were talking about something...something about the Galvanor...it's not just the Galvanor itself, but they said something about getting a really high input of energy. They want to capture our Draconian Core for that power input."

Johnny nodded slowly, "So...you're saying that the Gordians aren't declaring war on us because they believe that we're terrorist, but they're doing it because they want to capture our Draconian Core? They must really be desperate for the Galvanor, whatever that is. What is the Galvanor supposed to do, anyways?"

"It's a supercomputer," said Mavis, "it holds the source code to the universe. Anyone who can harness its power can theoretically do anything." she didn't exactly know where this information came from, until she realized that she accidently read through every book in the observatory while thinking about the Galvanor through her extrasensory perception.

"Well, that's great." Johnny plopped down onto the couch, "an all-powerful computer that can do anything in the universe, doesn't everyone want control of that?"

"Wait." Mavis suddenly put up her hands, "Wait. Everyone would want control of it. But certain people would want control of it more than others."

Johnny slowly nodded, his eyes narrowing, "Yeah… " he muttered, "and what's so surprising about that?"

Mavis gulped. She never thought of it, but she had to face the possibility of it now. "I think Fubuki is gonna go after the Galvanor."

* * *

Fubuki walked down the cold corridors of the facility she had just arrived in. She was standing on a research outpost orbiting a planet by the name of Magnarek. It was a large, volcanic planet, and the scientists in the facility were the people who could give Fubuki the closest answer to the answer that she wanted the most.

She wanted to know how to bring Kolt back from the dead.

In front of her, two guards leveled their guns as Fubuki approached. "Halt!" one of them yelled, "this is a secured area, put your hands above you-AUGH!"

The guards didn't finish, as Fubuki had incinerated both of them in a purple hellstorm of fire and flame. Her eyes glowed orange. The area around her was so warm, she literally melted through the door. Behind it, scientists were working on some experiments in the laboratory. They all looked up as Fubuki walked through the pile of molten steel that was what the door used to have been.

Before anyone could even react, Fubuki had flown through the room, destroying everything, sending glass and vials flying everywhere. She grabbed the person who must've been the lead scientist, and put him into a chokehold. "I have a slight problem," hissed Fubuki, "My husband is dead...tell me how to bring him back."

The scientist struggled, trying to pull on Fubuki's arms, "There's...no way...to...bring anyone…..back from the dead….." gasped the scientist, "there's no….way…"

Fubuki's eyes ignited. She roared, "Are you telling me that you want to _die_?" she screamed, "I'll kill you, burn your pathetic laboratory down, and kill all of your scientists as well if you don't give me an answer! TELL ME!"

"There's….one….way….the….Galvanor…."

"The Galvanor?" Fubuki's eyes glowed, "tell me what it is."

"It holds the source code to life...you could….theoretically...bring back your husband through that...but this is a little excessive...why not just ask, rather than killing my guards and destroying my lab?"

"Where is the Galvanor?" hissed Fubuki, "WHERE IS IT!"

"It's...in...Josiah's Lab...sector 473, belt 9…"

Fubuki had all the information she needed. With a snap of her fingers, the entire lab exploded in flames. She knew where to go now. She needed to find this Galvanor, and use it to bring back Kolt. It was the only way, and she would be the one to do it. Nothing would get in her way.


	113. Common Goals

As Johnny slept in the _Hotel Transylvania_ lounge, Mavis was keeping an ear out on the radio for anything interesting that might pop up. She knew that Fubuki would likely go to extreme lengths in order to attempt to bring back Kolt, even if it meant killing hundreds of innocents in the way. With pain, Mavis realized that she didn't mind killing innocents when she was trying to restore Johnny's life.

Sure enough, Mavis finally heard it, after browsing through thousands of radio channels. It was a faint signal that came from a nearby star system, with a planet by the name of Magnarek. It was a distress call, so Mavis naturally hacked through it, using her telekinesis and extrasensory perception to generate an image of the security footage in the facility that the incident occured in.

Mavis saw Fubuki walk through the front door to a laboratory, killing a few guards that were in the way. She then heard what Fubuki was saying, and it immediately filled her with dread. Fubuki was asking about where the Galvanor was, and what it was. She had also found out about the Galvanor, and was going after it.

But there was more from the radio. As she tapped into the live feed of the security footage, she saw that Fubuki was actually _still in_ the facility. All around her, warships were warping in, and surrounding the research facility. Most of them were from the Gordian Empire, since they immediately recognized Fubuki as the one in the building. Mavis clenched her teeth. Great. Now Hector was just going to use that as another piece of propaganda to use against her and Johnny.

Mavis scrambled up, going over to Johnny, and shaking him awake. He woke up, muttering, "Wha...Mavis, what is it? Are we under attack or something, 'cause if not, then I'm all down for sleeping some more…"

"Listen," said Mavis urgently, "I know where Fubuki is. We can go and...I don't know, confront her. She's busted her way into a research facility, and just learned about the Galvanor. She's trapped though, so we know exactly where she is. Come on, we should get going, now!"

Johnny got up sleepily, swaying to one side for a second, but quickly realigned himself. He followed Mavis over to where she was listening to the radio. "I hacked the radio frequencies using telekinesis, and used my extrasensory perception to view the security footage," said Mavis, "it's for certain. Mavis is on the research facility at Magnarek."

Johnny, surprisingly, didn't even question her this time. "Alright," he said, "let's get ready for battle then. So what're we gonna do? Kill Fubuki?"

Mavis winced. She didn't know if she wanted to _kill_ Fubuki. Fubuki was family to her. She was like Mavis's sister. But now...Mavis didn't want to think about it. She wouldn't kill Fubuki if she could avoid it, but if worse came to worse, then she would do it.

"We'll...we'll try to talk to her," said Mavis hesitantly, "she might not be as hopeless as she seems...maybe she's already debating whether or not to rejoin us...I mean, Fubuki isn't _that_ unreasonable, is she?" even as she said this, Mavis knew that it was a hopeless thought. She saw how angry Fubuki was towards her when she had told her that Kolt was dead.

Johnny nodded, but Mavis knew that he also thought that her idea was a bad one. Mavis turned to the control panel, typing in a few commands, "Hotel, bring us over to the planet of Magnarek, full speed. Have all shields and weapons systems ready before we drop out of warp. And also have our scanners searching for a source of extreme heat when we come out of hyperspace.

The Hotel rumbled down at them, clearly unhappy about going into another battle, but in the end, it complied. Soon enough, they were flying full speed towards the planet of Magnarek. As Mavis drew near, she began to reach out with her extrasensory perception, using it to see the battlefield before she entered it.

Mavis saw a planet, with a ring of asteroids around it. Orbiting the planet was a relatively small research facility, and surrounding the research facility were a few dozen warships, each one firing at the facility with fierce intensity. There were already several holes within the facility, but even so, Fubuki seemed to have adapted the ability to breath without oxygen without Mavis's help.

Mavis's extrasensory perception sent her an alert signal, telling her that they were drawing near the planet, which was only a few light seconds away. Mavis opened her eyes, right as they jumped out of warp. Right into the line of Gordian Warships. Their appearance instantly caused a disturbance, as the captains of each ship tried to figure out where they came from.

They wouldn't be confused for long. Mavis told the _Hotel Transylvania_ to go into cloak, then grabbed Johnny, releasing the doors, and forming an oxygen mask around Johnny's face. They were instantly sucked out into open space, flying several hundred miles per hour, due to Mavis's telekinetic augmentation.

Johnny was the first one to land this time. He slammed straight through the front door of the facility, using his magnetokinesis to glue himself to the ground. Behind him, Mavis also flew in. As Mavis entered the room, she telekinetically repaired the entire facility, making everything airtight, and forced every oxygen molecule back into the room telekinetically, instigating sound.

The two of them watched the area around them closely. Ahead of them, there was an opening in the wall, with a pile of burnt metal in front of it. The ashes of two guards stood on either side of it. Mavis silently approached the opening, raising her hands, ready for any attack at any time. Johnny followed, behind her, his hands also raised in case of a surprise attack.

Mavis jumped through the entrance first, her eyes filling the room with a bright blue glow. Her extrasensory perception instantly kicked in, going through the entire room. She knew that Fubuki was in here. But wherever she was, she was either standing very, _very_ still, or had some sort of extraordinarily advanced cloaking device, because Mavis couldn't tell exactly where she was.

The laboratory itself was dark. Most of the tables were burnt into charcoal by now. Outside, the warships had stop firing for some reason. It was dead silent inside the lab, which made Mavis uncomfortable. She had always hated long silences. They made her nervous.

"Fubuki?" Mavis called out into the dark, "Fubuki, come on, I came here to talk….please, Fubuki…."

"There's nothing to discuss."

Fubuki's voice came out from a corner of the room. She walked out of a shadow, startling Mavis and Johnny, who both tensed up at the sight of her. Fubuki looked terrible. Her skin had turned a horrible shade of pale, her eyes had become bright orange, and her hair had turned from black to grey. Her beauty, which was always something evident about her, was now completely nonexistent.

"I came here for answers," growled Fubuki, "not to fight someone as worthless as you, Mavis Dracula. I've found a way to revive Kolt. I've found a way to bring him back.". Mavis was frightened of hearing these words. They were only evidence of Fubuki's desperation. "Listen," said Mavis in a low voice, "Kolt wouldn't have wanted this, alright? We can work-"

"Don't tell me what Kolt would've _wanted_ ," hissed Fubuki, "you are the one who is responsible for his death, Mavis...you are the one who ruined so many lives...now that I think of it, I don't even know why I followed you. I don't even know why I wanted to be your student. You're nothing but a disease that needs to be cured."

Johnny growled, stepping forward, "Why you-"

Fubuki reacted first. She blasted Johnny with a telekinetic wave, but Johnny saw it coming. He created a magnetic barrier around himself, protecting himself, then shot electricity out of his hands, forcing Fubuki onto the defensive. Fubuki responded with a well-placed fireball, that collided directly with Johnny's stomach, sending him flying back.

Mavis ran forward, and was immediately surprised by Fubuki's agility. She was able to completely vanish, going at 3c. Mavis easily outpaced her, smashing Fubuki against the wall. She brought her fist back, instinctively ready to punch Fubuki, but as she saw Fubuki, a pang of guilt ran through her. Did she really want to kill her?

Mavis didn't have any time to answer that question, as she was suddenly blasted back by Fubuki's firestorm. Mavis only had enough time to form a shield around herself and Johnny before they were both engulfed in it. While the firestorm was still ongoing, however, Fubuki appeared right in front of Mavis's shield and shattered it. Mavis brought her foot back, kicking Fubuki right across the face in a perfect roundhouse kick, sending Fubuki flying backwards.

Mavis staggered back up. Fubuki had never came at Mavis with such force. Either she was now actually trying, or she had grown exceptionally more powerful in the time that she was on her own, both of which were equally likely. "It's hopeless!" yelled Mavis, "I'm more powerful than you, Fubuki. You can't win against me!"

Fubuki glared at Mavis. "Then let's see how you do when I put your husband on the line, just like how you did with mine!" she yelled back. Immediately, Mavis's confidence was blown away. Fubuki turned around, and punched the walls, blowing a hole straight through into open space. Instantly, Johnny's body and everything else in the room was sucked out into the vacuum of space.

Immediately, Mavis vanished, flying past Fubuki, and reappeared right next to Johnny. She drew in all of the oxygen atoms in the area around her, forcing them together to form oxygen molecules, and channeling these molecules down Johnny's throat. She had to keep Johnny alive. That was imperative.

But Fubuki wasn't done. Mavis sensed her coming at her, and turned around right in time to see a dozen fireballs whizzing right at Johnny. Mavis's eyes narrowed. So now Fubuki was going after Johnny? She really was going to pay for that one. Mavis deflected every fireball, then grabbed Fubuki, slamming her so hard against the side of the research facility that it split the entire thing in half. She then threw Fubuki straight at an asteroid, cracking it clean in half. All around them, the warships were firing once again.

Fubuki turned back to Mavis, and jumped into slow warp. According to Mavis's extrasensory perception, she was heading straight for Josiah's research facility. Heading straight for the Galvanor.

The _Hotel Transylvania_ appeared right next to Mavis, providing cover fire for Johnny and Mavis. The side door opened, and Mavis forced Johnny into the hotel, before shutting the door herself. Her extrasensory perception quickly did a read on Johnny's vitals, which told her that he was suffering from partial lack of oxygen and nitrogen. Without hesitation, Mavis used her telekinesis to force more air into Johnny's lungs, and used her telekinesis to force a steady lung beat as well.

It was then when the _Hotel Transylvania_ gave Mavis her first warning. _Warning: shields at 40%_

Mavis cursed, and turned back to the control panel, typing in commands frantically. She quickly entered in the coordinates of Josiah's observatory, and hit the warp button, jumping into hyperspace in the matter of a few seconds. Behind her, Mavis also felt the other warships jump into warp, following her.

* * *

 _Warning: Observatory Under Possible Attack-_

 _Please notify all personnel that the Galvanor Station is to be sealed off to everyone except for the grand leader and Josiah. All elite guards are being deployed for the safety and well-being of the Gordian Empire. All non-military personnel are to report immediately to their barracks, and all military personnel are to meet at their conference rooms, where they will be briefed on their jobs. Attackers are of the same race as the so-called Cyrdian Empire, so take caution. They are expected to have weaponry and powers that far exceed our own, and should therefore only have lethal weapons be used against them. Do not attempt to stun or disable. Turn all weapons to lethal._

 _Galvanor power source is at 12%_

 _Galvanor source code availability - 99%_

 _Galvanor controllability - 0%_

 _Galvanor Stability - 100%_

 _Galvanor Standard Potential Level - 9283_


	114. The Source Code to Everything

Johnny woke up in mid-warp, and as soon as his eyes opened, he scrambled up, brushing dust off of his clothes. "What did I miss?" he asked, bringing his hands up, which were now glowing a dark blue aura from all the magnetism that he was summoning up in case of attack, "I only remember Fubuki knocking me out, so-"

"It's fine," said Mavis, "you're alright, Johnny. Fubuki just knocked you back. Here, sit down a little, we'll be back in battle in a few minutes…". Fubuki helped set Johnny down on the couch, wrapping a blanket tightly around him and handing him a bar of chocolate from the refrigerator that she had found. As Johnny ate the chocolate, he asked only one question.

"So where are we going?" he asked, "Josiah's place?". Mavis sighed, and nodded, "Yeah," she said, sitting down next to Johnny, "We need to reach the Galvanor before Fubuki does. That way, she won't do any harm. While we're there, we can also try to steal it. I mean, the Galvanor isn't good in the hands of the Gordian Empire as well, if you think about it."

The _Hotel Transylvania_ suddenly gave them a warning, _5 minutes from Warp Zone, prepare for battle_. Mavis stood up, "Come on," she said, "let's get ready.". Mavis knew what was at stake here. The Galvanor would be better in her hands than anyone else, but at the same time, she also knew that Hector thought the same for himself, and same for Fubuki as well.

Johnny stood up as well, stretching out his arms a little, "Damn," he murmured, "I'm never gonna forget the thrill of battle. I've heard all of these horror stories, about war and stuff. But now that I'm in one, it's actually not that bad. Only the constant risk of death and getting knocked out again and again….but then again, that's all what you're expecting, so whatever."

The two of them stood ready, right as they came out of warp. In front of them, a line of warships had already assembled, and began to fire as soon as they came out of warp. The _Hotel Transylvania_ automatically banked right, flying away from the firestorm. Behind them, a dozen more warships appeared, some of them taking hits from friendly fire.

Mavis spotted the observatory, right behind the line of warships, "Johnny, I'm gonna go into the observatory!" she yelled, "you stay back here, control the ship! Fire on Fubuki if she ever comes out of warp, we only came here before her because her telekinetic warp is slow. Use thermonuclear missiles, throw everything you can at her!"

Johnny nodded, "Okay." he said, turning to the control panel, and pressing a few buttons. Soon enough, the _Hotel Transylvania_ was in full cloak, and was also launching missiles at the enemy ships. Mavis saw one warships split clean in half under heavy fire from the _Hotel Transylvania_ , and grinned. "Good luck, Mavis!" yelled Johnny, "Go!"

Mavis nodded. Turning, she hit the release hatch, and was sucked out into space. She immediately angled herself upwards, towards the research facility, and rocketed off towards it, cutting through the line of warships without being hit with ease. She formed a shield around herself, using it to deflect any laser bolts that came close to hitting her.

Mavis quickly located the hangar bays of the research facility- the same hangar bays she had just escaped from a few days ago. It looked only too familiar. Inside, Mavis saw dozens of elite soldiers and regular soldiers, armed and ready behind barriers and barrels that they had set up in anticipation for the attack. The workers were nowhere to be seen.

Mavis's eyes glowed, as her extrasensory perception kicked in, and began to scan the area around her. She quickly located the Galvanor, which was located at the very center of the research facility. It had one entrance, which was blocked off by a massive platoon of elite soldiers and mechs. The research facility seemed to have turned into more of a warzone than an observatory.

Without slowing down, Mavis went straight through the hangar bay shields, colliding with the ground with such force that the raw shockwave of it killed all of the soldiers, and knocked back all of the elites, killing a few of them as well. The elites got back up, opening fire with their heavy guns. Exploding 2-inch bullets came flying at Mavis from all directions, but Mavis couldn't even feel them. They were weak.

Mavis vanished, going too fast for the eye to see. The elites were grabbed out of nowhere, thrown against walls, choked, or disintegrated. When Mavis finally came out of this speed, a missile flew out of nowhere and made a direct collision with her, engulfing the area she was in with an orange fireball. Mavis flew over to the soldier who fired the missile, and choked him to death, telekinetically throwing his rocket launcher against one of the other elite soldiers, knocking him back.

Soon enough, every soldier in the hangar bay was dead. Mavis ran over to the opposite end of the hangars, forcing open a set of doors and running through them. Behind it, she was met face-to-face with a group of mechs, who leveled their weapons, firing beams of light that cut through the walls like butter. Mavis easily dissipated into mist, flying through the beams of light, and grabbing the first mech, tossing him aside like a rag doll. The other nine mechs opened fire with their machine guns, which Mavis easily dodged.

Mavis then felt it. Fubuki's presence, coming out of warp in the space behind her. Mavis cursed. She had limited time to get to the Galvanor before Fubuki did. Mavis yelled, destroying all of the mechs in a single telekinetic blast. She jumped over the wreckage of the mechs, landing on the other end of the room, where her extrasensory perception kicked in, telling her exactly where to go and what to do.

Mavis ran through two rooms easily, one of them a laboratory. She had never gone this far into the research facility, but she was fairly confident in her extrasensory perception abilities. Behind her, Mavis could feel Fubuki landing in the hangar bays of the facility, and going into it, chasing after the Galvanor as well.

Mavis smashed open another door, right in time to see the final line of elite soldiers level their guns. Mavis knew that they were scared. Their heart rates were far above normal, and Mavis could feel that they wanted to run away, but were being forced to fight. Mavis sighed. They asked for it, in that case.

But before Mavis could finish them off, Fubuki came sliding into view right behind her. As soon as Mavis and Fubuki made eye contact, Fubuki roared, charging straight at Mavis. Mavis didn't let her get the speed advantage. She also vanished, purposely going a little slow, to at least let Fubuki think that she had a chance. The two of them connected fists in the center of the hallway, sending out a shockwave to powerful that it killed all of the elites instantly.

Fubuki was the one who was knocked back. She stumbled, falling a little, but got back up. Mavis telekinetically blasted her back yet again, and this time, vanished, phasing through the doors to the room that held the Galvanor. As soon as Mavis phased through the door, she heard Fubuki punch the security doors once. Dust trickled from the ceiling. Mavis cursed. The doors wouldn't hold for long.

Mavis turned around, viewing the room around her. It was a relatively large room, with wires and panels running along the side walls, and in the center, was a perfect sphere, made of panels and wires as well. This must've been the Galvanor. Mavis ran over to the sphere, taking a look at the main control panel. Most of it looked like technical gibberish to her, but in the top right had corner, there was a button with the words, "Activation" printed in small letters underneath it.

"Don't press that." Mavis jumped as she heard the familiar voice speak from one corner of the room. Josiah walked towards her, pointing a gun right at Mavis's face, "if you press that, you risk causing the time-space continuum to be disrupted, which could potentially destroy all of us."

Mavis's eyes narrowed, "I thought the Galvanor held the source code to the universe," she said, "don't you guys know how to control it? What do you mean, I risk the space-time continuum to be disrupted? You guys are the ones who know how to control this computer. I'll just figure it out on my own."

"You don't understand," Josiah's voice was growing more urgent, "we have the source code to the universe. We just don't know how to control it. If you press that button, anything can happen. Anything random can happen. The computer will select a random code within the universe, and just change it in some inconceivable way. Every time you press the button, you risk killing everyone!"

Mavis was about to respond, right as Fubuki punched the door again. This time, the door itself bent. Josiah's eyes flickered towards the door, "Who is that?" he asked suspiciously, "why aren't you helping them get in? You're part of the Cyrdian Empire as well, after all...why aren't you helping your comrades?"

"She's not on my side," growled Mavis, "Listen, Josiah, this is all a big misunderstanding. Johnny and I aren't the bad guys. We were never part of the Cyrdian Empire. You guys have it all wrong. We tried to show you that we were friendly when we helped your men fight off a Cyrdian Cube that was invading one of your planets."

Josiah was still pointing his gun at Mavis, but his eyes showed some signs of doubt, "I've heard stories," he said softly, "but I cannot believe them. It makes no sense. The day you guys arrive, is also the day a massive galactic invasion begins. It can't be a coincidence. You have to be a part of them. You have to be helping them. That's the only way any of this would make sense."

Before Mavis could respond, Fubuki completely cracked the door open. She flew through, and spotted Mavis and Josiah at the center of the room. Without any warning, Josiah was thrown to one side of the room, where he scrambled up, some blood flowing down his forehead. Mavis blocked Fubuki's telekinetic attack, but had to jump out of the way as she began to launch fireballs at her.

Fubuki ran towards the Galvanor, but before she could reach it, she was snatched up by Mavis's telekinesis, and thrown back. Mavis grabbed a chunk of the security door that Fubuki had broken, and threw it at her as well, hoping it would slow her down, but the security doors simply split in half yet again as Fubuki punched her way through it, flying through the air and landing right in front of Mavis.

The two of them were immediately engaged into a brutal melee fight, Fubuki trying to kill, and Mavis trying to stop Fubuki from getting through her without killing her. Mavis blocked yet another punch, then connected Fubuki's arm with her fist, and spun her around, pinning Fubuki to the ground. Before Mavis could do anything else, Fubuki ignited a firestorm around herself, engulfing the area they were in with flame.

When the flames vanished, Fubuki wasn't under Mavis anymore. Mavis cursed. Fubuki must've used the flames as a stealth cover to get away from Mavis. She turned around, right in time to see Fubuki running towards the Galvanor. Right as she reached the control panel, however, Josiah jumped in, firing his gun over and over again. Fubuki was hit three times, each wound healing just as quickly as the one before, so Josiah turned the gun onto knockback, and fired it again. This time, the bullet sent Fubuki flying back five feet, where she landed on her back, and got back up.

"Don't touch the computer!" yelled Josiah, "if you do, it risks to kill us all!"

Mavis knew that it was hopeless. She ran to Fubuki, launching a telekinetic wave from under her, smashing her full-force in the face with it, sending her flying back. Fubuki got back up, this time punching Mavis squarely in the chest. Mavis was sent flying back, but stopped herself in midair, pulling Fubuki away from the Galvanor. Josiah also opened fire with his knockback gun, trying to slow down Fubuki as much as possible.

Fubuki vanished, this time jumping to subwarp, reappearing next to the Galvanor in the matter of less than a picosecond, and pressing the button to the corner of it. The button that Josiah warned never to touch. The button that may spell doom to all of reality.

* * *

 _Galvanor Log -_

…

 _Activation Complex starting...1%...23%...63%...99%...100%..._

…

 _Err. Code - - - Point 9583 - - -_

 _At Universal Point 39489281038430284028.B.2924028402840.938402840284028340284, Galvanor process starting...activating source code manipulation complex…_

 _Manipulation Complex starting...1%...19%...20%...43%...60%...71%...79%...99%...100%..._

 _Manipulation Complex has started._

…

 _Manipulation Complex Complete_


	115. Dreamscape

Mavis, Josiah, and Fubuki all froze. Fubuki was breathing hard, looking around, as if expecting Kolt to appear out of nowhere. Mavis was tense, her hands raised in case of a surprise attack from Fubuki. Josiah was staring, wide-eyed, at the computer, which was now glowing and running commands on its console. For the first five seconds, nothing happened. But then, Mavis heard it. A sizzling noise, as if someone was making a barbecue.

The Galvanor suddenly began to glow bright-blue. Electricity crackled from its core, sending lightning and electricity flying everywhere. Fubuki was knocked back against the wall, and Josiah was forced to take cover behind a table to keep himself from getting absolutely fried. When the electricity and lightning finally died down, Mavis looked up to see that the core was gone.

"What?" Mavis ran forward, to where the Galvanor just was. It was gone. Josiah also scrambled up, panting a little from protecting himself from the lightning and electricity, "The Galvanor must've activated its teleportation complex!" he yelled, "it's teleported to a random point, anywhere within a 5 light-year radius. But its effects are still yet to come...you guys are so _stupid_ , why would she _ever_ press the button?"

Mavis was about to ask what the effects were going to be, when she sensed it herself. Outside one of the windows, Mavis suddenly saw a portal open. The ships that were nearest to the portal were blown back, some of them breaking in half. Mavis then saw what was coming out of the portal. And she realized what Josiah's definition of "random" really was.

The largest wave of eggs that Mavis had ever seen came flying out of the portal. These were the classical, normal, run-of-themill chicken eggs that Mavis was used to after travelling with Johnny for so long. Only difference was, there were trillions of them, and they seemed to each have a mind of their own, chasing after ships and the research facility.

"What the hell-" Mavis formed a telekinetic barrier around the research facility, blocking of all of the eggs. Soon enough, there was a solid barrier of broken egg shells surrounding the facility. In the hangar bays, Mavis felt dozens of fighters and ships desperately crash-land, their engines and windshields covered with egg.

Behind Mavis, Fubuki got back. Her eyes came into focus, sharpening into the view of the trillions of eggs that were now bombarding the facility. Mavis felt her slide out of view to the side, heading into the hangar. Mavis sighed with relief. At least Fubuki wasn't in a mood to fight anymore. That took off a decent amount of stress on Mavis's shoulders.

Finally, the portal closed. The eggs stopped coming at them. Mavis sighed, letting the barrier dissolve. Behind her, Mavis felt Josiah run over to the Galvanor and check on its computer systems. "You guys forced it into a random point!" yelled Josiah, "my work is gone now, thanks to you!"

Mavis wasn't about to stick around to chat. She ran through the main doors, going so fast that she vanished, reappearing an instant later at the hangar bays. There, thank goodness, was Johnny. The _Hotel Transylvania_ was docked right next to him, covered with egg and muck. Mavis ran over, telekinetically cleaning the _Hotel Transylvania_ , and hugging Johnny.

"I was so worried," she said, "I thought that you were lost…"

"It's alright…" murmured Johnny, "So what happened? What's up with all the eggs? I presume it has something to do with the Galvanor? Also, by the way, I saw Fubuki run down here and steal a fighter. I couldn't stop her, she was too far away...was it you or her who activated the Galvanor?"

The question were fast, but Mavis answered each of them, even as they got on board the ship, "The Galvanor was activated by Fubuki," explained Mavis, "which is why the eggs started coming out at us. Right now, Josiah can't control the Galvanar, so whenever someone activates it, something random occurs. Oh, and by the way, the Galvanor is lost now."

Johnny looked up, "What?" he asked, "it's...destroyed? You blew it up?"

"No," Mavis rolled her eyes, "I mean it's _lost_. Literally, nobody knows where it is now. When we activated the Galvanor, it teleported to a random location within five light years. Nobody knows where it is now, but if we're gonna stay alive, I say we need to hunt down the Galvanor, and secure it for ourselves. Everyone else wants it. In fact, I think Fubuki is probably also gonna go looking for it."

Right as Mavis finished her sentence, the _Hotel Transylvania_ jolted awake, rising silently off the ground, and flying out of the hangar bay shields. For the first time, nobody seemed to try to stop them. Everyone was either too busy repairing their engines, which were now clogged with egg, or else trying to take a shower, since they were all covered with eggs.

As they entered into open space, Mavis saw the pure destruction that some harmless-looking eggs could do. Entire warships, coated with cracked eggs. Egg yolk was splattered onto every ship like some sort of horrendous graffiti, and several of the warship's engines had shut down due to egg clogs, which the mechanics must've been working very hard to get rid of.

Soon enough, Johnny had typed in the commands into the console that made the _Hotel Transylvania_ go into warp. They were soon in hyperspace. As they flew through warp, Johnny sat down at one of the sofas, and Mavis opened the refrigerator, grabbing an ice cream and popping it open, eating the entire thing in one gulp.

Johnny watched Mavis, "So what do we do now?" he asked, "I say we pursue the Galvanor, it's the best line of action right now. If Fubuki gets there first, then she'll probably use it to bring back Kolt, and kill you. We cannot let the Galvanor end up in Fubuki's hands no matter what. And the Gordian Empire would also be searching for it as well, which is equally bad."

Mavis nodded slowly, "Yeah," she said, "I was thinking that as well...but how do we tell where the Galvanor is? I mean, it's not as if there's a tracking device on it or something...Josiah literally said that it was a completely random point within a five light-year radius. It could literally be anywhere."

"Yeah, well, also take note that Fubuki doesn't know to find it either," said Johnny gruffly, "if there was one person in the universe who could find the Galvanor, who would it be? There has to be someone out there who could find it for us. Someone who could track it down. How about Josiah? He created it, after all."

Mavis shrugged, "Josiah seemed pretty honest when he said that he had no idea where it was," said Mavis, "No, I don't think Josiah would know...we need to find someone who could find anything. Where can we find something like that?"

Johnny sighed, laying down, "I don't know…" he muttered, "Hotel, keep us on a hyperspace loop for now. Mavis, we can talk about this after I get some rest...damn, that was tiring.". Mavis smiled a little, patting Johnny on the back, "It's fine," she said reassuringly, "go get some rest, I'll probably also do the same.". With that, she grabbed a blanket, snuggled up next to Johnny, and fell asleep quietly.

* * *

"Mavis!"

Mavis opened her eyes, and quickly recognized her surroundings as a dream environment. The voice she heard was so precious to her, it almost brought tears to her eyes. She turned around, and saw Dracula leaning down over her, smiling and poking her.

"Mavis, you okay?" asked Dracula, "I've been hearing stories down in the realm of the dead, but I want to hear it from you myself. What's been going on lately? I heard that you found the Galvanor, or something of that sort…"

"Yeah," said Mavis, "it's supposed to be the source code to life. It can do anything, but right now, it's completely randomized. Why did you come to see me, dad? There must be a deeper reason than just wanting to see me. You only come here if you're about to tell me something important, after all…"

Dracula's eyes immediately became grim. "Mavey, things have not been going well in the realm of the dead," he said nervously, "I'm forbidden to talk to you about the specifics of it, thanks to the laws that bind me, but you must know this, Mavis….there is a natural law in the universe...nobody has ever escaped it, and I only hope that you can…"

"What is it, dad?" Mavis wanted to know. Anything that was a danger to her was also a danger to Johnny, and Mavis had vowed to herself that she would never let Johnny die after watching him do so once. Whatever it was, she had to be able to survive it."

"Listen," Dracula looked around nervously, as if expecting someone to sneak up on him and attack him, "my time here is limited, so listen closely. In the realm of the dead, there is an entity we call the Guardian. This..guardian has no name, no identity, no form. Nobody has ever seen him or heard of him, because he's never been required."

"Okay…" Mavis nodded, "go on."

"The Guardian only awakes when someone of extraordinary strength exists in the universe," explained Dracula, "he is the person who sets the benchmark on how powerful an individual can become. Anyone who becomes as powerful as the Guardian will awake the guardian, and will be hunted by it. Mavis, dear, I'm afraid that you are approaching this benchmark. You are literally becoming too powerful."

Mavis stepped back, surprised, "So...he'll start coming after me if I become too powerful? How strong is he? How do you even know that he exists? You said that nobody's ever seen him or heard of him. How are you so sure that this...guardian even exists? Sounds like a myth to me."

"He is not a myth," said Dracula firmly, "Mavis, you must heed my word. The Guardian is already roaming the universe in search of you. When he finds you, you'll be in grave danger. More danger than anything you've ever imagined before. You must be ready to fight, at any time, and in any location. Promise me, Mavey, that you'll stay alive."

Mavis looked up at her father. His face had concern and caring written all over it, and yet, Mavis found it hard to say the words that Dracula wanted to hear. "I…" Mavis paused, "I'll stay alive, I promise." she said firmly, her eyes glowing as she forced the words out of her mouth. Why was it so hard to say something so simple?

Dracula smiled, standing back up, "Thank you, Mavey." he said, "that's what I came here for, Mavis. Oh, and also, here's your birthday gift."

"What?" Mavis was so surprised, she accidentally punched a hole through the ground with her telekinesis. "My...birthday?". She had been so caught up with trying to stay alive and keep Johnny alive, that something as normal as a birthday seemed outlandish to her at this point. Maybe Mavis should really take a break from constant battle.

"Yes, of course," said Dracula, "your birthday was today, my sweetest little blood orange. Here you go…"

Dracula leaned down, and handed Mavis a Rubik's Cube. Mavis had only seen Johnny play with them on Earth before, and knew that she was dreadful at it. She looked up at Dracula in surprise, "A Rubik's cube?" she asked, "why that?"

Dracula grinned a little, "Oh, you'll find out, sooner or later. Anyways, you appear to have a slight problem on your hands, so you should probably return to the real world...there you go."

"Wait-" Mavis wanted Dracula to stay. She wanted to talk to him more. But even so, she felt her eyelids grow heavy, and she felt herself falling towards the ground...

And Mavis woke up to the sound of an explosion.

* * *

 **[Mavis Dracula] Lvl: 782**

 **[Fubuki] Lvl: 57**

 **[Johnny] Lvl: 53**

 **[Josiah] Lvl: 1**

 **[Crusader-Class Titan] Lvl: 88**

* * *

 **Note to Readers:**

 **So, this is gonna be my first official note on a story, apart from the tiny ones that I've done in previous chapters (those don't really count). As of right now, it is Sunday, 4/1/2018, 4:42 pm. I just wanted to tell those who are new to this story (which is pretty much everyone), my writing schedule. Generally speaking, I publish 2-3 new chapters every day on the weekends (Saturday-Sunday), and publish at least 2 during the weekdays, one from Monday-Thursday, and at least 1 on Friday. My school life is pretty busy, so I can't spend all my time writing out chapters. Anyways, I just wanted to thank those who read my story for taking the time to actually read it, as I understand that it can become a little hectic at times. I made this chapter shorter than usual because I wanted to include something extra. I never exactly got into the backgrounds of any of the larger nations or states that I mention in this story, so here they are.**

* * *

 **[Gordian Empire]**

 **Founded 5,000 years before the current time in this chapter. It's leader is Hector, a slightly immature, overly-enthusiastic but charismatic leader, who uses military force and aggression in order to secure his dominance over other societies. He is best known for being "friends" with Josiah, the greatest mathematician in the galaxy, and because of this, is also known for officially owning the Galvanor, which is a supercomputer that holds the source code to the universe. The army of the Gordian Empire stands at 19 trillion soldiers per army, with 9 armies. Its navies consist of Corvettes, cruisers, battleships, warships, carriers, and dreadnoughts, with a total of 8 million vessels, and 3 dreadnoughts. The Gordian Empire claims the rights to use WPDs (Weapons of Planetary Destruction). Economy is strong, and is led by arms manufacturing and space mining. Civil rights and political freedoms are limited, but do exist.**

* * *

 **[Cyrdian Empire]**

 **Founded 14,000 years before the current time in this chapter. Its leader's name is Dur Muriklax, the renowned leader of the church of Cyrdia. The nation is known for its devout views towards religion, and its xenophobic views towards outsiders. The Cyrdian Species is known for looking exactly like humans. Cyrdian Empire primarily uses military dominance and might to conquer and destroy other societies to prove their strength, and have a frightening army, consisting of 43 trillion soldiers per army, with 98 armies. It's navies consist of corvettes, cruisers, frigates, broadsides, battleships, carriers, dreadnoughts, and flagships, with a total of 2 billion vessels in its navy. The economy is led by the arms manufacturing industry. The Cyrdian Empire is also known for a complete neglect of women's rights, as all females are taken from parents at birth, and trained from childhood the art of sexual pleasure and bearing children. Political freedoms are nonexistant.**


	116. A New Master

"What the-" Mavis felt Johnny scramble off the couch in the other room, and then heard a second explosion, right outside the windows of the _Hotel Transylvania_. The Hotel itself roared, as it activated its missiles and fired it at something. Mavis's extrasensory perception reached it before her eyes did.

A massive Cyrdian Cube, surrounded by a massive fleet of millions of warships and billions of fighters. They were in an asteroid field, out in rogue space. Mavis scrambled over to Johnny, "How did they pull us out of warp?" she asked urgently, "I thought we were going fast enough to stay out of the range of their gravity wells."

"That was only for the Gordian Empire," growled Johnny, typing in a command on the console, and forcing the _Hotel Transylvania_ into cloak, "remember, these guys are more advanced and more destructive than the Gordian Empire. We have to be careful around them, or we'll get blown to bits…"

Still, things weren't quite matching up correctly. Why was the Cyrdian Cube out here, deep in rogue space, when it should've been busy invading planets and killing the inhabitants of the galaxy? Mavis didn't exactly have time to figure that out, because the Cyrdian Cube decided to fire a few homing missiles, that quickly locked onto the Hotel and began to follow it, despite it being cloaked.

Mavis took control, her reaction time guiding the hotel straight into the asteroid field, where it slid through narrow alleys and went through giant fields of rock. Eventually, Mavis heard the missile explode behind her. But by then, there was a big problem. While Mavis was using the engines at maximum power to avoid the missile, the cloak itself had shut off, revealing them to the rest of the cube.

"Oh, crap." Mavis heard Johnny mutter right next to her. The Cyrdian Cube fired all of its weapons, right at them.

A hailstorm of missiles, lasers, explosive bolts, and torpedoes came flying right at them. Mavis's reaction time was the only thing that was saving them. She went right through the storm, avoiding lasers and missiles at any point, reacting to things that were less than a picosecond away from the ship.

It was then when Mavis saw it. A mass of energy and light coming from the bottom of the ship. It was as if they were trying to mine through something very big, and as Mavis's eyes focused in on the light, she realized that they were actually trying to drill through a giant asteroid.

Mavis frowned. What was in an asteroid that was so valuable, that the Cyrdian Empire would sacrifice one of its cubes to do the job? It seemed kind of improper. A machine of war, meant to destroy planets and civilizations, is instead used to mine through an asteroid for….something.

Mavis turned the ship, flying straight for the bright mass of light that was at the bottom of the Cyrdian Cube, and was quickly met with another hailstorm of missiles, all of which she dodged. But now that she was closer, her extrasensory perception could actually see what was going on at the mining facility. They weren't trying to breaking the asteroid. They were trying to _weld_ two pieces of metal together with the laser.

"Johnny," Mavis's voice was slightly shaky, as she focused on dodging as many lasers and missiles as possible, "I think they're trying to weld something together down there…" as Mavis watched, she saw massive transport ships fly down and drop off huge amounts of materials at the area where the light was.

Johnny was also watching, and what he thought of immediately brought attention to Mavis, "I think they're trying to build something," he commented, "like, a sort of outpost, or a base, or something similar to that. Somewhere where the Cyrdian Cubes could come back to restock or be safe, you know."

Mavis sighed. There was nothing here that interested her or Johnny. In fact, the Cyrdians building a base in the middle of the galaxy was probably a _good_ thing for them, since it would cause a good distraction away from Mavis and Johnny. She pushed a few buttons on the control panel, setting in coordinates for a random star system. "We're gonna be warping to a different star system," she said firmly, "we have no business here anyways."

Johnny nodded. Mavis hit the warp button, and soon enough they were whizzing through hyperspace, towards a random star system.

* * *

Fubuki was walking through the streets of a planet called Dorundun. She had landed here only an hour ago, and was now wandering the area, looking for anything that may be useful to her in finding the Galvanor. All around her were cube-like houses, and the stubby-short inhabitants of the place, who watched her with their ovular eyes.

As a steady rainfall began to come in, Fubuki's eyes quickly adjusted, and she saw what looked like a temple in front of her. Fubuki didn't know anywhere else that she could go, so she walked in there, keeping her cloak on to hide her face. The temple was large. All around the edges were seats made of stone, and in the center was a large table covered with candles. There was what looked like a monk sitting in the center, laying down candles at the table, and another cloaked man in the corner.

Fubuki walked around the sides of the temple, trying to read the inscriptions on the sides of the walls. As she did this, the monk who was at the center walked up to her. "Hey," he growled, "whaddaya doing here, miss? Ya' know that here, _women_ are supposed to be back at home?"

Those were the last words that monk ever said, as Fubuki snapped his neck easily. In the corner, Fubuki also felt the cloaked man who was sitting at one of the benches stand up and walk towards her. Fubuki growled. These people were more annoying than she had anticipated. But what happened next surprised her.

"You have come searching for a way to bring back your long-lost husband," said the man, "I can feel your passion, your drive. You have everything that makes someone powerful."

"You know nothing," growled Fubuki, "whoever you are, you can get lost, before I decide to kill you. And I've been doing plenty of killing in the past few days. So get out."

To prove her point, Fubuki sent a telekinetic shockwave at the man, but before it could hit him, the man had vanished, and reappeared right in front of Fubuki, startling her. Instantly, electricity shot out of his hands, causing Fubuki to scream with pain and fall to the ground, writhing.

After the electricity finally stopped, Fubuki was left on the ground, panting. She growled, trying to get up, but her muscles felt as if they had been burnt right out of her body. Above her, the cloaked man smiled, "You have spirit," he said, "but that spirit will never get you anywhere without a proper teacher. I can bring your husband back. I can help you find the Galvanor. I know a place where we can find it."

Fubuki slowly felt the feeling come back to her arms. She clambered back up, "Show me...how to find the Galvanor, and how to control it," she said, panting a little, "how do I do it? I have to know how."

"You forget...address me as 'teacher' and perhaps we can work together…" lightning shot out from the man's hands yet again, causing Fubuki to fall to the ground, writhing in pain. This time, the man held it there for a full minute. When he stopped, Fubuki was gasping for breath.

"Well, what do you say?" asked the man, "I asked you a question, pupil…" more lightning. Fubuki felt as if her skin was on fire. She felt as if her lungs were exploding. When the electricity finally stopped, after a while, Fubuki gasped, "I'll….learn...under you...teacher."

The cloaked man smiled. He lifted Fubuki up telekinetically, "Good," he said, "very good, Fubuki Clarizoma. My name is Quintus, but for the time being, you will be referring to me as 'teacher'. I've been watching you for a long time by now...and I know what you are looking for. And I can help you reach it, and control it."

Fubuki's eyes were hungry, "We need to start now then," she said, "we have to start searching for the Galvanor right now."

M

"Patience," Quintus waved his hands, "I know a place where we can find the Galvanor, but its on a faraway planet. I have my own interests regarding the Galvanor as well, but I'm not strong enough to get to the area in which we can find the Galvanor in. Our combined strength should be able to do the trick, if anything."

"Let's get going then," Fubuki stood up, her eyes starting to glow a harsh green, "we have to start hunting the Galvanor right now. Mavis and the Gordians are already looking for the Galvanor, and if we don't do something soon, then they're gonna get to it before us."

"You want to act," said Quintus, "that is good, but you must first prove your loyalty to me." Quintus's eyes drifted to the village behind Fubuki. The short, stubby inhabitants of the place were wobbling around, caring for their gardens and plants. In the corner, a few children were playing tag on the field. "Why don't you kill everyone in that village," he said, "and then I can say that you're loyal to me…"

Fubuki growled, "I'll do anything to get Kolt back," she hissed, "a couple of lives are no different."

* * *

Mavis always found that meditation helped her concentrate, but also served a technical purpose. Now that Mavis was this strong, Mavis began to realize that she didn't need sleep anymore. Sure, sleep felt _good_ , but it wasn't a necessity anymore. Mavis had lost the need for rest. So instead of sleeping, she meditated. Not only did it calm her, it also made her extrasensory perception go _way_ above its normal scale. She was able to fly through entire star systems, planets, cities, every alleyway and every apartment.

And right now, she was seeing something very odd. She was flying through a planet by the name of Zorous, an exuberant and wealthy planet, which was covered with casinos, gambling blocks, and taverns. It was essentially the Las Vegas of the galaxy. But Mavis's extrasensory perception was telling her something else. Something important was here.

Mavis's vision tunneled, as she flew through one of the particular casinos in the area, and her eyes focused in on one particular individual. He was tall, very similar to a human, except he had an unnaturally curved chin, and a pointy mustache. He was playing poker, and was laughing next to two women whom he was talking to.

"Yes, yes," Mavis heard the man say, "yes, my dear, that is perfectly correct. When I sell it, it'll be worth quadrillions of galactic credits. I'll be the richest, wealthiest man in the entire universe. I'll be able to literally buy anything after it happens."

"How did you get it though?" purred one of the women, softly combing the man's hair, "how did you obtain an object of such power and rarity, that you would be able to gain such wealth and prosperity just from selling it?"

"To be honest…" the man's face became puzzled for a moment. Mavis's eyes immediately caught it, "I'm not really sure," he said, "it just...sort of appeared in my basement the other day. Point is, my clients have already paid me 6 trillion credits just for letting them _look_ at it. Guess how much money I'll make if I sell it. Ha!"

Mavis's concentration snapped. Her vision tunneled, forcing her to fly out of the casino, back into the city, through the atmosphere, into space, out of the solar system, out of the asteroid radius, back into the _Hotel Transylvania_ -

Mavis sat up straight, panting. She had found it. She knew who to look for now. And she knew where to look for him.

* * *

 _Security Footage #9103949284028402840275726482649127_

 _Word Matches: 14_

 _Probably that Suspect is True: 72%_

 _Advise immediate deployment of security troops to secure the Galvanor. Location: Zorous, City: Urimech, Sector: 11a, Individual Name: Orios Mack_

* * *

 **Just a heads up guys: During Spring Break, I'll be taking a vacation. I'll be bringing my computer, so I'll still be capable of updating my chapters, but don't expect it to be as much as the amount I updated on President's Week or Christmas Break.**


	117. Reveal the Location

Mavis and Johnny came out of warp right above Zorous right as Mavis had finished explaining to Johnny what had happened in her meditation. Johnny was slightly doubtful, but still had faith in Mavis's extrasensory capabilities, so he decided to let Mavis guide the _Hotel Transylvania_ to the planet of Zorous. In front of them, the massive planned was covered with light. Huge cities sprawled all over the entire planet.

As the _Hotel Transylvania_ entered through the atmosphere, Mavis quickly took control of the ship, guiding it to the exact city in which she had seen the conversation take place. The city's name was Urimech, one of the larger casino cities, and was home to the wealthiest of Zorous. As the ship flew above Urimech, Mavis quickly saw why this planet was so bright. Huge casinos, some of them a few miles tall, rose out of the ground, with a few million people gambling in each.

Mavis quickly located a docking port, and landed there, mind-wiping the security officer there to let them do so. She and Johnny quickly ran out of the ship, and Mavis took charge yet again, her extrasensory perception guiding them. They made a dozen turns, through the winding streets of the casino city, passing through poker shops, pool tables, and taverns. Eventually, they finally made it to one particularly large casino. And Mavis instantly knew that something was wrong.

A group of soldiers had completely barricaded the entrance of the casino off. There was smoke and blood in the walls of the casino itself, and Mavis could smell the scent of bullets and laser bolts. Whoever they were going for certainly had put up a fight. Mavis could already hear a few of the police officers and soldiers talking about what had happened.

"You know where the suspect is? I heard that he lives in sector 11b...the exact location, we aren't sure though...you think the rumors are true though? You think the suspect actually has the galvanor?"

"Yeah," another soldiers replied confidently, "No way he _doesn't_ have it. We got a 79% true probability. That rarely ever happens. Point is, we have units surrounding sector 11b at the moment right now. Nobody leaves, and nobody enters. We're doing a house-to-house combing right now. He'll be found soon, believe me…"

Mavis grabbed Johnny's arm, "I know where he is," she said urgently, "these guys came here to try and capture the person who has the Galvanor, but that person escaped and retreated into his home. It's somewhere in this city, in an area called sector 11b."

Johnny's eyes wandered to a map that was posted nearby. He quickly found the location of sector 11b, and turned to Mavis, "I know where it is," he said urgently, "come on, follow me…"

Johnny and Mavis ran through the streets, winding through dozens of taverns and shiny billboards. Mavis's extrasensory perception had already kicked in, calculating the millions of possible routes that may lead to sector 11b, and narrowing it down to the actual destination. Her eyes glowed, and she began to take the lead. "There's a shortcut here…" Mavis and Johnny ran through an alleyway that Mavis had found to be a shortcut. A few seconds later, they burst into a street, right in front of a barricade that was blocking off a gate.

"Stop right there!" Mavis and Johnny both froze as the lead soldier pointed his gun right at them, "only authorized personnel may enter this area. Anyone else gets shot if they cross the line. No exceptions! Get back!"

Mavis and Johnny both glanced at each other. They knew that the barricade wasn't going anywhere, and there wasn't any other alternative way of getting into the sector either. And if there was, then Mavis was too impatient to find out. Without even telling Johnny to do anything, Mavis had already unleashed a telekinetic wave, blowing the entire barricade aside and sending all the soldiers flying in different directions.

Mavis and Johnny both ran through the gate, Mavis quickly taking note of the sign on top of the gate that said, "Sector 11b".

"We're in the right sector…" muttered Mavis, "now we just need to find where this guy is….Johnny, cover me."

Johnny nodded, and Mavis began to scan the area with her extrasensory perception. Her vision tunneled, going through every room, every inch of the sector. She saw every blade of grass, every rock and pebble, every tree branch, until finally, she located the man she was looking for. He was hiding in the basement of his home, which was on the other end of the sector. And even worse, there were a group of soldiers right outside his door, banging on it.

Mavis snapped out of her extrasensory perception, turning to Johnny, "They're on the other side of the sector," she said urgently, "we have to get going, now. Hold onto my arm…"

Johnny nodded, grabbing Mavis's arm, right as Mavis jumped to light speed, travelling across the sector in the fraction of an instant. Mavis came out of light speed a few hundred feet above the area she saw the man in. Her eyes quickly scanned the area below her, locating the apartment building that housed Orios. Mavis frowned. How did she know his name? Her extrasensory perception really was starting to act up these days.

Mavis rocketed down, releasing Johnny when she was only five feet above the ground, slamming into the soldiers without any warning, sending a huge explosion that incinerated everyone apart from Johnny within a 10-feet radius of her.

Immediately, there were gunshots, as the soldiers began firing at Mavis. Mavis heard one of the soldiers yell, "It's her! It's Mavis! Call in backup, she must be here to capture the Galvanor!"

Mavis cursed. She needed to go in a little more low-profile the next few times. Mavis grabbed a limo car from the sidewalk, throwing it against the surviving soldiers, who quickly went down with a scream as the limo exploded on top of them, turning them into nothing more than a burnt pile of clothes on the ground.

Right as Mavis was about to draw back, however, she heard more gunshots, and saw a dozen men armed with the energy version of AK-47s firing from the house that Orios was hiding in. Mavis ducked, avoiding all of the bullets, right as Johnny let loose with a wave of electricity that killed five of the twelve enemies.

Mavis didn't even wait to congratulate herself on her work. She ran through the courtyard, smashing open the door, right in time to get shot fourteen times with an energy rifle from a person who was hiding right behind the door. Mavis regenerated herself, but quickly took note that it took a little longer than usual. She grit her teeth. These energy weapons were nastier than the ones she was used to.

She quickly grabbed the soldier who had the energy rifle, smashing him against the wall so hard that the entire thing caved in and collapsed on him. Johnny came in behind Mavis, and quickly electrified another soldier who was trying to hide behind a cabinet in the corner.

Mavis quickly took note that the entire house looked like the home of someone who was very wealthy. There were intricate vases, paintings, cabinets, grandfather clocks, everything hanging on the walls. A stuffed lion's head glared down at Mavis from the other side of the room, and the smell of wood and dust was rampant in the air.

As much as this looked like an ideal place to live in, Mavis was still tense. This was also the ideal place for an ambush. Every cabinet could house a sniper. Every grandfather clock could hold a trap just waiting to be triggered. Any locked door could have a man with a shotgun hiding right behind it.

Mavis suddenly felt it. Danger.

Without warning, Johnny let out a cry of pain and fell. Mavis turned around, ducking right as a blade cut through the area her neck was just in. Mavis then telekinetically grabbed the blade, and tore it in half.

Behind Mavis, Johnny was bleeding out, badly. Mavis ran up to him, her hands quickly working on Johnny's body, using telekinesis to quicken the healing process. Johnny's side seemed to have been cut pretty badly. He had already lost alot of blood, and according to Mavis's extrasensory perception, his rib cages and his kidney had been struck.

The healing worked. The wounds quickly receded, vanishing and being replaced with fresh skin. The rib cages realigned itself, and the kidney was quickly restored. As Mavis was working on siphoning out the blood from the internal bleeding, however, she heard a gunshot behind her, and quickly formed a telekinetic shield around Johnny before rolling out of the way.

Behind Mavis, was none other than a Gordian security officer holding an energy shotgun. He fired again, but this time, Mavis didn't even give him a chance. She vanished, reappearing behind him and snapping his neck. It was too late though. Already, Mavis heard the sound of yelling outside the house, and heard people run through the front door that she had already smashed open.

Mavis turned around, blasting all the soldiers who had ran through back, then grabbed Johnny, rushing the healing process, and helping him back up.

"You alright?" Mavis asked. Behind her, a soldier threw a grenade, which Mavis caught in the air telekinetically and threw right back at the soldier, causing him to go down with a scream as a fireball engulfed him.

"I'm….ow...I'm okay, I guess." muttered Johnny, wincing a little. Mavis immediately felt bad. She had rushed the healing process too much. There was still some internal bleeding. But apparently it wasn't enough to stop Johnny from fighting. He quickly turned around, electrocuting a pair of soldiers who had just made their way back through the front door.

"Mavis, go," said Johnny, "get to whoever has the Galvanor. I'll hold off the soldiers here. Got it?"

Mavis nodded. She turned around, running through the hallways behind her. As she ran through the mansion, she heard the sound of glass smashing, as soldiers jumped right through the windows into the house, firing their weapons. Mavis killed anyone who got in her way, and finally found the entrance to the basement, at the very back of the mansion.

Mavis ran over, leaning down and grabbing the trapdoor. It was locked, obviously, so Mavis ripped it off its hinges, tossing the door aside. Right as she did this, she came face to face with a man wielding a shotgun right underneath, who fired. Mavis took a faceful of laser bolts, but quickly regenerated yet again.

The man had no way to reload quick enough, as Mavis grabbed him and threw him against the wall, knocking him out. Mavis dissipated into mist, flying through the ladder system, and rematerializing at the very bottom. When Mavis opened her eyes there, she quickly took note that the area was dark. Her extrasensory perception kicked in, brightening everything.

The room she was in was a rectangular box, with nothing but a few dusty crates in the corner. As Mavis sensed the area around her, she suddenly felt a life force in the room. A life force...that came directly from the pile of crates that were in the corner of the room.

Mavis grabbed the crates telekinetically, throwing them aside, revealing Orios, who was hiding underneath them, clutching a box.

"Get over here…" growled Mavis. Orios was flung against the wall, then pulled straight towards Mavis. Mavis grabbed the box, cracking it open, revealing the Galvanor. She grabbed the Galvanor, tucking it under her arm, and threw Orios back against the pile of crates.

"GUARDS!" yelled Orios, "GET HER!"

Above Mavis, hatches opened up, and soldiers fell from the ceiling, landing, with night-vision goggles and energy rifles. They opened fire, straight at Mavis. Mavis vanished, going too fast for the eye to see, killing every soldier one by one, until finally, it was only Orios who was left.

Orios scrambled back as Mavis approached. Even under a pair of night-vision goggles, Mavis could tell that he was panicking. "If I can't have the Galvanor…" Orios's eyes were bulging. He was a lunatic, "then you won't have it, either!"

He pressed a button that was on the wall, and instantly, Mavis felt it. A massive radio transmission, that went through the entire galaxy. A radio transmission that would go to every planet, every ship, every person in every star system.

Orios had just told the entire galaxy the location of the Galvanor.


	118. The Battle of Zorous

The first thing Mavis wanted to do was yell at Orios for being so stupid. She was pretty convinced that Orios didn't know the consequences of what he had just done. The entire galaxy was probably on the hunt for the Galvanor. As soon as they hear of where the Galvanor is, it would be a mad scramble of who could get there first.

Above her, Mavis heard another explosion as a rocket collided with the mansion, sending wood and glass flying everywhere. The sound of lightning crackling and fried flesh told Mavis that Johnny was still upstairs, fighting. However, the yells of the soldiers and the constant sound of gunfire wasn't exactly reassuring either.

Mavis grabbed Orios, snapping his neck easily and killing him. There was no point in letting Orios live. He was nothing but a threat and a liability at this point. Mavis then turned around, dissipating into mist, flying back through the ladders, and coming out through the trapdoor, right in time to see the entire mansion in shambles.

The once-elaborate mansion, now smashed and cracked and shattered from all the rockets and missiles it had to endure. Mavis saw a soldier jump through a smashed window, and quickly killed him. She ran through the hallway, going towards the sound of battle which was raging at the center of the mansion.

As Mavis made finally forced her way into the living room, she saw where all the battle was coming from. Johnny had formed a defensive in the dining room, using his electrical powers to fry anyone who walked through the door. But even as Mavis watched, Johnny was tiring out. His arms were weakening, and his eyes were oozing with tiredness.

All around Johnny, soldiers and police were hiding behind tables. Whenever one of them poked their head above the table, they would instantly be vaporized by raw electricity. However, Johnny was tiring, so his electricity was becoming weaker and weaker. Johnny wouldn't be able to hold out for long.

Mavis intervened. There were screams, as the soldiers were torn to shreds by Mavis's telekinesis. Soon enough, the entire room was nothing more than a pile of dead soldiers and police officers. Mavis ran over to Johnny, who was swaying slightly. She grabbed his arm, "You okay?" she yelled, "we gotta get moving, now! I have the Galvanor!"

Johnny nodded, clearly dazed, but still slightly in focus. Mavis and Johnny made their way out of the mansion, killing a few soldiers who they met on the way out. However, when Mavis exited the building, she immediately saw a problem. A very big, very catastrophic, very _annoying_ problem.

The sky was filled with starships that were warping in. Already, Mavis saw ships from different factions, pirates, mercenaries, explorers, scientists, mathematicians, soldiers. Behind them all, five massive Gordian Flagships, each one the size of New York City, warped in as well. Transports and drop pods began to fill the skies. Mavis began to hear the sounds of explosions and gunfire already throughout the streets.

In front of Mavis, a dozen Gordian Empire drop pods slammed into the ground, their hatches sliding open and marines running out of them. As soon as they saw Mavis, and saw the Galvanor in her hands, they all began to yell and open fire, forcing Mavis behind a wall. Johnny took the liberty of electrocuting them after that.

But Johnny's lightning attacks weren't enough. One of the marines had managed to contact their commander, and inform them of the location of the Galvanor. Mavis was about to yell at Johnny to get moving, but before she could do that, two transports landed on the ground in the streets a couple hundred feet away, and walkers began to march out of the transports.

Before Mavis was even able to blow up the walkers, however, a rocket came out of nowhere, slamming into one of the walkers and sending it flying off to the side, destroyed. The other walker turned around, opening fire at something that was hiding out of view, but also exploded into a massive fireball, collapsing as well.

Mavis grabbed Johnny's arm, leading him to the opposite end of the street. Behind them, a dozen pirates jumped out from behind a mansion. One of them launched another rocket at Mavis, which Mavis redirected right back at them, killing them all. "Come on!" yelled Mavis, "if we don't get out of this planet soon, then we'll get screwed! Grab my arm!"

Johnny grabbed Mavis's arm, right as she jumped into flight, flying higher and higher, through the air. All around them was absolute chaos. Fighters exploded, ships launched volleys of missiles at each other, drop pods slammed into the ground with lethal force, and laser bolts were filling the air with the smell of plasma. But as Mavis was going through the stratosphere, a few fighters suddenly noticed the Galvanor that was clutched in Mavis's arms.

Whoever the fighter was working for, it must've had a radio to tell his superiors where the Galvanor was, because the next thing Mavis knew, she saw two entire Gordian Warships shift their course and head straight for her. Mavis growled. She had to do something that would prevent herself from getting caught by these guys.

Right as Mavis was about to do something, however, she felt something strange within her. Something very familiar, and something very different. Her extrasensory perception picked it up immediately, and it was the one thing Mavis feared the most in this battle.

Fubuki had just entered into the star system.

Next thing Mavis knew, the fighters were exploding all around her. The two warships which had begun to pursue her had been torn in half. A few drop pods blew up like popcorn in front of her eyes. At first, Mavis had no idea what was happening, before she realized that it was her destroying the ships through her sheer nervousness.

Johnny, who was still hanging onto Mavis's arm, yelled up at her, "What're we doing?" he yelled, "Come on, let's get out of here!". Mavis grit her teeth. He was right. She couldn't afford to just sit here and do nothing while Fubuki was somewhere out there hunting her. Mavis rocketed upwards, flying right into space, forming an oxygen bubble around Johnny.

Space was just as chaotic as the ground beneath her. Mavis saw hundreds of ships, all of them fighting each other. This was like an intergalactical easter egg hunt, except way more lethal and way more competitive. However, Mavis quickly took note of one particular ship. It was black, sleek, and had no guns on it. But at the same time, it was going straight at them.

Mavis sensed it. She vanished, reappearing behind the ship. Her extrasensory perception had just told her that Fubuki and someone else was in the ship. Before Mavis could do anything however, she felt a force that she quickly recognized as telekinesis grab hold of her, and hurl her against the planet.

Mavis was caught so off-guard from the telekinetic attack, that she didn't even stop herself. Right before slamming into the ground, Mavis felt Johnny release himself, using his magnetic flight to float above the ground. Mavis didn't bother to stop herself. She created a mini dust storm where she landed, but it wasn't a big deal.

"What was that?" asked Johnny, looking up, "who did that? I thought you were the strongest in the universe!"

His question was answered immediately, as in front of them, the sleek black ship landed, its hatches opening. Out of it walked two figures, one of which Mavis immediately recognized as Fubuki. The part that really freaked Mavis out was the other person. Had Fubuki found another teacher?

"Let us make this quick…" the man said silkily, "my name is Quintus...you will give us the Galvanor, now. Your refusal to do so will result in your immediate death."

Mavis smirked. Clearly, this guy was pretty confident. But even so, she shouldn't underestimate him. She quickly spat on the ground, "what makes you think that I'll give you the Galvanor?" she hissed, "I can probably beat your ass with one eye closed and an arm tied around my back."

Mavis immediately sensed what happened next. A stream of lightning, flying at her, but this time, it wasn't from Johnny, but from Quintus. A telekinetic shield immediately formed in front of Mavis, blocking off the lightning attack and absorbing it. She redirected the lightning back at Quintus, which he dodged.

"Very well…" Quintus's eyes flashed, "you chose to fight…"

He and Fubuki began to run straight at Mavis, and Mavis's reaction time was perfect. She knew that Quintus was more powerful than Johnny, so it was her job to distract him. Johnny could fight Fubuki, as they were a pretty even match. But Mavis also took note that Quintus was the one going for Johnny.

Mavis appeared right in front of Quintus, throwing him back telekinetically. Fubuki launched a fireball at Mavis, which Mavis redirected to Quintus, forcing him to duck in order to dodge it. While Quintus was ducking, Mavis appeared above him, bringing her fist down, but at the last second, Quintus disappeared, reappearing a few feet away.

As the battle between Mavis and Quintus drew on, Mavis using only one hand because the other was needed to hold the Galvanor, Mavis quickly took note that Quintus wasn't an offensive fighter. He was a defensive one, that relied on counterattacks in order to fight back. At the same time, Fubuki and Johnny were cooking up a good duel a few hundred feet away. The ground was already seriously charred, as flames and electricity shot in all directions. Mavis and Fubuki seemed evenly matched.

Mavis sent a relatively weak punch, which Quintus managed to block with a telekinetic shield that he formed around himself. He retaliated with more streams of electricity, all of which Mavis blocked off.

It was then when Mavis noticed something. Johnny had been knocked to the ground, and Fubuki was about to kill him, with a fireball. Blood rushed to Mavis's face. Without hesitation, she dropped her defense completely, using her telekinesis to block off the attack from Fubuki and throw her back against the wall, allowing Johnny to scramble up.

But that gave Quintus a chance. While Mavis's guard was down, he released his own telekinetic wave, sending a shockwave outwards that slammed into Mavis will full force, sending her flying through a wall to the side. As Mavis was getting back up, she heard a roar, and looked up in time to see Quintus coming down at her with his fist drawn back.

Mavis stepped out of the way, dodging Quintus's attack easily. Right as Quintus landed, Mavis grabbed him telekinetically, and tried to snap his neck, but was stopped by a telekinetic rebuttal from Quintus. Mavis growled. So she couldn't kill Quintus as easily as she would've liked. No matter. Mavis felt the Galvanor in her left hand, which was now getting a little sweaty.

Quintus suddenly ran up to Mavis, using all of his telekinetic force to attempt to crush Mavis's arm. It didn't exactly crush her arm, but it tickled a tiny bit to Mavis. Tickled her enough to make her drop the Galvanor, at least.

All at once, Mavis's amusement was replaced with dread. The Galvanor flew through the air, into Quintus's hand. Before Mavis could even grab it back telekinetically, Quintus had pressed a button on his wrist panel, and had dematerialized, probably teleporting back into his ship. Without hesitation, Mavis ran out into the main street where they were just fighting. Johnny was also standing there. Fubuki was nowhere to be seen.

In front of them, the ship that Fubuki and Quintus had arrived in had its engines started. It rose off the ground quickly, and immediately jumped into warp. Mavis grabbed Johnny's arm, "They have the Galvanor, hold on!" was the only thing she could say, before she also rose off the ground, and jumped to maximum warp.

* * *

 _Gordian Empire Report Log - Zorous_

 _Received report that Orios Mack was the owner of the Galvanor. Attempted to raid house, but was stopped by terrorists Mavis and Johnny. The two of them are currently believed to be in possession of the Galvanor, but we have tracks on them. They are currently in mid-warp, heading towards the star system of Magnarek. They are likely going there to somehow find a way to use the Galvanor._

 _Report from the planet of Titrus. Entire village slaughtered by two individuals, whom we deemed as named Fubuki and Quintus, from recent security footage. They are, from what we have obtained through security, attempting to steal the Galvanor as well. Take note that they also appeared in the Battle of Zorous, and engaged in battle with Space Terrorists Mavis and Johnny. This may be evidence of two gang fights._


	119. Test of Strength

Quintus's ship was much faster than what Mavis was used to. Mavis had to admit that much. She actually had to put in effort in order to keep up with it. The ship flew at about 20 million times the speed of light, so Mavis accelerated herself to ten times that speed and caught up to it. Johnny was protected from the warp by a telekinetic barrier that Mavis had set up, but Mavis felt that at her current speeds, even her own telekinetic barrier may not hold out for long.

Mavis accelerated herself further, until she was right next to Quintus's ship. Without warning, Mavis vanished completely from the warp itself, phasing through the walls of the ship, and stumbling into it. She somehow also pulled Johnny with her, and the two of them were thrown against the floor of the ship, but scrambled up quickly.

It was then when Mavis noticed how big the ship itself was. They appeared to be in the middle of a relatively large room, something that looked like a dining room, that was in the ship. On the table were plates, some of them having half-eaten food on it. There was a clear smell of muffins in the air. For an evil person who wanted to bring back her long-lost husband, it was a pretty benign setting.

Mavis and Johnny cautiously walked around the dining room, Mavis using her extrasensory perception to scan the area around her. The ship itself was about the size of a house, in both length and height. According to the life force detections that she got, both Fubuki and Quintus were at the front of the ship, in the bridge.

Mavis signalled to Johnny, telling him to keep quiet. The two of them stealthily made their way through a hallway that opened up at the back of the dining room. As Mavis and Johnny made their way through the winding hallways, Mavis took note of an energy buildup that was happening in the center of the ship. It was a pretty big energy buildup, almost like that of a Draconian Core, except not as powerful.

As Mavis turned another corner, she found herself face to face with a security camera that was hanging from a ceiling. Instantly, Mavis vanished, dissipating into mist and flying back around the corner in less than a picosecond. But it was still enough to trigger the motion sensors that were mounted on the walls around the camera.

Immediately, the alarm lights began to flash. A female voice came out through the intercom: _Warning: Intruder Detected in Sector 18b_. Johnny electrocuted the intercom nearest to them so it wouldn't say anything else, but by that time, the damage had already been done. Quintus and Fubuki knew that they were in the ship.

All at once, the door opposite to them in the hallway flew open, and Mavis was met with a charging Fubuki, who ran straight at her, lobbing fireballs and streams of burning hot flame at Mavis with surprising speed and ferocity. Mavis deflected most of them, but had to absorb five of the fireballs, which had no effect on her vampiric skin, obviously.

Behind Fubuki, Quintus also lunged in, this time attacking Johnny. Johnny was able to form an electrical barrier between himself and Quintus, right as Quintus's attack came into full effect. Johnny was knocked back, hard, but still got up, which was a feat that impressed Mavis. Johnny retaliated with electrical attacks, sending bolts of lightning and electricity flying through the room.

As Mavis was watching the battle, however, she failed to pay attention to Fubuki, who took advantage of the absence of attention by punching Mavis squarely across the face, sending Mavis flying down the hallway, and slamming into the side of the hull. Before Fubuki could do anything else, however, Mavis had vanished, and reappeared in the entryway to the bridge. Johnny was also there, as Mavis had grabbed him while going at hypervisionary speeds.

Before either Quintus or Fubuki could do anything, Mavis had slammed the door shut, and locked it. Mavis then applied a thick layer of telekinetic protection over to door, sealing it off from most physical attacks. Even so, Quintus's brutal psychic powers were almost enough to crack through it. As Quintus sent another punch at the door, Mavis turned to Johnny.

"Go to the controls, locate the Galvanor, and then drop us out of warp!" she yelled, kind of panicked. A third punch rang through the door, but Mavis's shield held fast. However, a fourth one caused a slight fracture in the armor. "Now!" yelled Mavis, this time using both of her arms to support the shield.

Johnny nodded, scrambling over to the controls, and logging onto the console. After getting through the main screen, he pressed the "map" button, and was quickly greeted by an image of a map of the entire ship. He saw the bridge, which was at the front, the living quarters, the dining hall, the training room, and then...the storage room. Right underneath the bridge.

Johnny typed in a command into the console, and immediately, video footage came up onto the screen, showing the security camera point of view of the storage room. Sure enough, in the very center of the storage room, laying in an abnormally large glass jar, was the Galvanor.

"It's in the storage room!" yelled Johnny, "and the storage room is right underneath us...Mavis, you think you can get that?"

Mavis nodded. She turned around, telekinetically ripping a hole right through the floor, but accidently overdoing it. Rather than only blasting a hole into the storage room, she ended up punching a hole through the entire ship, causing explosive decompression to take place. Johnny was only able to magnetically attach himself to the ground before the entire bridge exploded.

Apart from Johnny, who was safe at the moment, the main thing Mavis was worried about what the Galvanor. And she saw the Galvanor get sucked straight out of the ship into open space. On the good side, however, the entire ship came out of warp. The strength of Mavis's attack seemed to have been able to disable the warp drives sufficiently.

However, on the bad side, the explosive decompression also caused the bridge doors to get ripped off their hinges, opening it up to Fubuki and Quintus, both of whom came charging into the bridge, lobbing fireballs and electricity at Mavis and Johnny. Johnny, who was already using his powers to keep himself latched onto the ship, was forced behind the control panel.

Mavis was about to attack Fubuki, when she noticed Quintus completely ignore her and Johnny, and instead, fly straight through the opening, into open space. Mavis knew what he was going for. He wanted to recapture the Galvanor. And Mavis wasn't about to let that happen so easily.

Mavis unleashed a telekinetic shockwave that rocked the entire ship, throwing back Fubuki, and knocking Quintus off-balance. She flew straight through the opening, past Quintus, and began to use her extrasensory perception to scan the area around her. Almost immediately, she found the Galvanor, floating a few hundred feet away.

Before Mavis could go after it, however, she was flung back with surprising force by Quintus, and smashed against an asteroid, shattering it. "You are _such_ a nuisance," Mavis didn't know how Quintus could talk in space, but somehow, it was happening, "but no matter, in the end, you were just as weak as any opponent that I have ever faced…"

Mavis jumped out of the way as a lightning strike suddenly vaporized the area she was just in. She was confused. This type of lightning wasn't the one she was used to. The lightning wasn't coming from Quintus's hands, but from space itself. Mavis suddenly heard rumbling. That was strange. Sound in space.

Mavis didn't know what happened, but the next thing she knew, her reflexes were carrying her all over the place. She ran at hypervisionary speeds, vanishing completely in the point of view of Quintus, causing him to growl with frustration. This was Quintus's most powerful move. He could manipulate celestial lightning storms, and use them to attack his enemies.

But even now, after his most lethal move was being used, he still couldn't hit Mavis. She was too fast….Quintus grit his teeth. He would have to give this everything he had. With a roar, Quintus clapped his hands together, and unleashed a complete electrical wave, ionizing every particle that was in the general location of Mavis. Soon enough, Mavis's location was filled with flashes of light, and the smell of ozone.

Mavis, to be honest, was not having the easiest time of her life. It wasn't that the lightning storm was fast, but more because of the sheer number of lightning bolts. By now, Mavis had resorted to dissipating herself into mist, and from that, avoided all of the lightning bolts. In the corner of Mavis's eye, she saw Fubuki and Johnny locked in combat, the two of them both going in for the kill. As much as Mavis wanted to help Johnny, she had something else to deal with at the moment.

As Mavis dodged another dozen lightning strikes, she suddenly felt it. It was a familiar feeling. The feeling that she felt whenever a ship came out of warp near her. All at once, three massive Gordian Flagships appeared right behind them, their guns trained on the four of them. Mavis cursed. The Gordians must've tracked them through warp. That meant that they also had backup coming in.

Right as that happened, however, Mavis also felt Johnny's life force dim considerably. She turned around, right in time to see Fubuki land a perfect fireball hit on his face, blasting him into space. Mavis immediately flew over, telekientically healing Johnny. To the side, Quintus seemed more interested in the three flagships that had just arrived.

"This is a personal matter!" he bellowed, his voice echoing through space, "begone!". A massive lightning storm soon engulfed the three flagships, damaging their shields and weaponry. By the time the lightning storm died out, all three flagships had been disabled and their weapons systems destroyed. Mavis took note of the way Fubuki stared in awe at the power of Quintus. It was a familiar look. The same look Mavis saw on her face the day Fubuki asked her whether or not she could learn from her.

Mavis then felt something that she hadn't felt in a long time. Jealousy. Jealousy, that Fubuki saw Quintus as a better teacher than her. Jealousy, in that Fubuki's loyalty now lay in someobody else. It was almost natural at this point. Up until only a few days ago, Fubuki had been a friend, almost a family member. She was pretty much Mavis's sister up until Kolt died. But now, she was gone, becaues of Quintus.

"You are _weak_!" screamed Quintus hysterically, "you can do _nothing_! Fubuki told me about how she trusted you, about how she put her own strength into your hands! Your incapable, filthy hands! You are _nothing_ , and will never be anything!"

These words had an effect on Mavis. Not only because they were false, but because of the part about Fubuki. So now Quintus was going to make fun of her by pointing out that Fubuki betrayed her? Mavis's eyes glowed. "You're wrong." she said, "and I'm going to prove you wrong. Right now."

Mavis reached out with her telekinesis, drawing in the nearest sun. It was the largest thing she's ever tried to grab telekinetically, but she was more than strong enough to do it. Quintus, however, didn't quite see it. "What're you doing?" he laughed, "trying to move a few pebbles with your telekinesis?"

Mavis began to accelerate the sun, moving it closer and closer to herself. While she was doing this, she formed a telekinetic barrier around herself and Johnny. The sun grew faster and faster. Mavis decided to add a spin to it. Soon enough, it had exceeded the acceleration of the fastest natural star. And soon enough, Quintus and Fubuki began to notice it.

"What the…" Quintus's skepticism was soon replaced by terror, "what...what is this?" he began to back up, as the sun came into view in front of him. Mavis already felt the planets in the star system flying off, as the sun that they orbited was torn off its course. "This is proof that I'm not as weak as Fubuki's told you," growled Mavis, "you want _weak_? This is my version of _weak_."

The sun came directly into view, going so close to Mavis, that even she began to feel the heat through her vampiric skin. Mavis saw Quintus and Fubuki both form shields to protect themselves. "This is impossible!" yelled Quintus, "you...you're...you're nuts!"

"Maybe I am…"

Mavis tossed the Galvanor out to Quintus, out of the radius of her shield. She wanted to destroy the Galvanor above all things. And this was how she was going to do it. "Enjoy this gift," she said cruelly, "you'll need it."

Mavis then turned her back, and forced the sun into a supernova.


	120. The Easter Egg Hunt

Things got crazy pretty quickly. Mavis wasn't really even sure what a supernova was. She had only heard stories about its powers from Johnny, who often told her weird stuff about astronomy. But even this was beyond her expectations. There was a massive burst of color and light, as the entire sun imploded right on top of them. Mavis's telekinetic shield prevented her or Johnny from taking any damage, but Fubuki and Quintus were both blown back. As Mavis had expected, the force of the supernova wasn't quite enough to kill Quintus or Fubuki, but it was enough to force them onto the defensive, which was certainly a bit of progress.

The warships that the Gordian Empire had sent were immediately vaporized, one of them lucky enough to jump into warp right before the supernova exploded. The other two, however, were instantly turned into a scatter of ashes. Even as Mavis watched all of this, the supernova was still ongoing. A storm of gold and orange rushed all around her. Mavis even found it hard to concentrate with all the color and noise that was flying everywhere.

But what happened next was the worst thing that could ever possibly happen in this scenario. Mavis quickly noticed Quintus's eyes grow slim with some sort of plan that he came up with. He raised his arms, and something began to happen. Mavis saw it immediately. The supernova's rays began to contract, some of it seemingly collapsing in on itself. Tendrils of light began to go towards each other rather than away, like a regular supernova. It was then when Mavis saw it. The Galvanor. It was still there, thanks to the shield that Quintus had formed around it, but that wasn't what worried Mavis. She knew that as long as the Galvanor didn't receive a proper input of power, it would simply stay randomized.

A proper input of power...Mavis's eyes widened. How had she been so _stupid_? To think that a supernova would be the best way to defeat Quintus? Next thing Mavis knew, she had jumped out of the shield radius that she had created, rocketing towards the Galvanor at full speed. By then, the Galvanor had already sucked up much of the energy released by the supernova, and its sides were beginning to glow and make whirring noises, something that made Mavis very worried. By now, the supernova was definitely beginning to act weirdly. Entire sections of it were fizzling out, siphoned into the Galvanor's energy banks. Mavis didn't have much time before the Galvanor would be ready.

There was only one thing that Mavis could do. She completely vanished, traveling at hypervisionary speeds, and reappeared right in front of the Galvanor. She blocked the attack that came from Quintus, redirecting his electricity attack to Fubuki, who was also about to attack her. Before either of them could do anything else, Mavis had grabbed the Galvanor, and was about to turn away, when Mavis was struck yet again by Quintus's electricity.

Mavis had never actually taken a direct hit from the electricity. She had expected it to be much more painful than this. This, which was only a slight trickle of pain that barely even registered to her. By now, she was too battle-hardened. She could barely even feel war-based pain anymore. But it was still enough to slow her down. Slow her down enough so that Fubuki could lob a well-placed fireball straight at Mavis's face. Immediately, the place Mavis was in was filled with a bright flash of black flame, as Fubuki's fireball made direct contact. Fubuki sat there, panting. She had put everything she had into that fireball. She had never even produced a black flame before.

But even so, despite the 900 quadrillion+ temperatures that the fireball brought to her, Mavis still stood up. She was completely unbruised. "Impressive," she commented to Fubuki, "your fireball skills really are getting better, my old student...perhaps if you could only use them for a better cause than your selfish, greedy aspirations." Fubuki immediately hissed at her, despite her tiredness from summoning up a fireball of such magnitude. "You let Kolt die," she hissed, "you let him burn! I'll kill you for that...if not today, then another day..."

"Is this what Kolt would've wanted?" asked Mavis, "tell me, Fubuki...would Kolt wanted you to have gone against me? He died trying to _help_ me, for cripe's sake! What do you not understand? If this is the path that you're going to take...then..." Mavis gulped. She really didn't want to say this, but she had to, "then I'll have to kill you.". Fubuki seemed absolutely unfazed by this comment. She sneered at Mavis, "You know nothing of what Kolt would've wanted!" she yelled, "you are the cause of his _death_!"

Fubuki marked the last words by charging at Mavis, an attack that Mavis saw from a mile away. She easily sidestepped her old student, bringing her fist out and sending Fubuki flying back against an asteroid. Mavis was about to turn away, when she also felt Quintus come at her with his electricity again. This time, Mavis defended herself. A telekinetic barrier formed between herself and the electricity, blocking it off easily. "Fubuki, kill her!" yelled Quintus, Mavis took note that there was an edge of uneasiness to his voice, "she is the reason for your husband's death! Avenge him!"

Fubuki turned towards Mavis, and when Mavis looked at her in the eyes, all she saw were flames. The benign green eyes that she was so used to were gone. Replaced by two pits of burning flame. Eyes filled with hate and anger. It brought sadness to Mavis. What she knew of as her sister was now gone. Nothing was left. She was nothing more than Olyra at this point. Fubuki charged at Mavis, not holding anything back this time. Black flames swirled all around Mavis, but they had no effect. They were unusually cold, compared to what Mavis was expecting.

But something happened. Mavis stumbled back, as something suddenly came out, through the black and gold lighting that was Fubuki's flames and the supernova. It was the largest ship, apart from the _Destructor_ , that Mavis had ever seen. At the front of it was some kind of opening, in which it began to siphon up the energy released from the supernova, and on the sides of it, dozens of artillery batteries opened fire, spraying the area Fubuki and Mavis were in with explosions and fire.

By now, the Galvanor was warm in Mavis's hands. She was certain that if someone were to capture the Galvanor right now, that it would work. The Galvanor was sufficiently charged. It was ready for use right now. It was the one thing that scared Mavis the most at this point. The one thing that Mavis regarded as something that could legitimately end her. The source code to the universe. Whoever had it, could have anything they wanted instantly.

Fubuki yelled as she flew back, slamming into an asteroid and getting knocked out. That was a relief for Mavis. At least she could postpone Fubuki's death now. But Quintus was still alive. Even so, he wasn't exactly a problem, which this giant warship that was now bearing down on Mavis. To the side, Mavis saw the words " _Sunsnapper_ " painted on the hull of the warship. Mavis frowned. What type of ship was built specifically to snap suns? That was kind of a strange specialty for a ship.

While Mavis was thinking about this, however, she suddenly felt a force run up her arm, and the Galvanor was suddenly snatched out of her hands. It flew through space, up through a capture beam that retracted into the hull of the sunsnapper. "NO!" Mavis would go after the Galvanor, if it wasn't for Johnny. She quickly ran back over to Johnny, who was just sitting up, rubbing his eyes within the telekinetic shield that Mavis had formed around him. "The Gordians have the Galvanor!" yelled Mavis, "you okay?"

"They...they have it?" Johnny seemed slightly dazed, "yeah...yeah, let's go and get it...wait a second..." Mavis helped Johnny stand up, and as soon as he was standing straight, she grabbed his arm, and flew straight for the Sunsnapper. Mavis vanished, moving too fast for anything to keep track of, and reappeared in the hangar bays of the sunsnapper, which was filled with drones and fighters of all kinds. It was also filled with people. Gordian soldiers, to be exact. Immediately, alarms started blaring, soldiers started yelling, and guns started firing. Mavis sighed. Just another hour of her boring life.

Josiah was starting to doubt his sanity. First, he heard that the Galvanor was on the planet of Zorous, which was great, except it appeared in a rich gambler's basement, was stolen by Mavis after she beat up a few soldiers, then about half the galaxy shows up at that planet as well wanting to get their hands on the Galvanor. And then after that, three whole Gordian flagships, destroyed by Mavis after she...started a supernova? Josiah really didn't want to believe that, but even he had to face it, after seeing footage of it from a spy drone. He had just arrived in his only war-based private ship, the _Sunsnapper_ , in order to capture the Galvanor, and get it to safety.

Unfortunately, Mavis, Johnny, and Hector were all on the ship. And none of them appeared to be in a very pacifistic mood. At the current moment, the Galvanor was sitting on the counter in the front of the bridge. Hector was pacing the bridge, waving his hands in the air, talking about the possibilities they now had. "Why don't you just use the Galvanor in order to get rid of those pests?" demanded Hector, pointing at one of the security cameras, which showed Mavis tearing apart a security mech, "we need to get rid of her, dangit!"

"I've told you," said Josiah flatly, "the Galvanor has only been fueled up to 94% its needed energy. If we do decide to use the Galvanor's source code manipulation complex, then it has a 32% chance of failure. And if it does fail, then it'll be randomized. And if it's randomized, bad things can happen, like last time. Don't you remember that, Hector?"

Hector winced. He certainly did remember that. Days upon days of nothing but fixing and writing out contracts to private businesses that were clamoring over their egg-clogged ships and windshields. The entire economy for farm-grown eggs plummeting, and an entire water supply contaminated with egg. It was an absolute political and economic nightmare for him, especially as the leader of the Gordian Empire. He absolutely hated it.

Hector waved his hands in the air, "that is irrelevant," he mumbled, a little mutely, "that was when we had a zero percent chance of success, remember? This time, we have a much better chance of success, and even if we fail...well...I'll take the paperwork if that happens, anyways. Go on, Josiah...come on…"

Josiah shook his head resolutely, "I will not touch the Galvanor until we have one hundred percent assurance that there will be no deviation from our intended affects," he said sternly, "I'm the one who knows how to work this thing, I'll be the one to do it. Nobody else can do it, anyways…"

There was another explosion below decks, as Mavis destroyed another security mech. Hector turned to Josiah, a little hysterical, "are you insane?" he hissed, "you do realize, that if you don't activate the Galvanor right now, that we'll have a _zero_ percent chance of survival, right? You've seen what Mavis and Johnny and Fubuki are capable of doing...don't let that happen here!"

To be honest, Josiah didn't want to activate the Galvanor mainly because he sympathized with Mavis and Johnny. Despite them trying to kill him on multiple occasions, Josiah was smart enough to see that they were trying to do the right thing, despite being extensively bad at it. But even so, he made up a convincing sounding excuse for himself, "If I activate the Galvanor," he growled, "there will be a 32% chance of ruining the space-time continuum, and destroying the lives of millions of people who are part of the nation that you are supposed to be trying to protect!"

Another explosion, this one much closer. Mavis was getting closer. Josiah felt himself beginning to sweat. If Mavis actually got into the bridge, which she probably would, then Josiah would probably be forced to use the Galvanor against her...he did value his own life above Mavis's. But at the same time, he really didn't want to kill Mavis. He was one of the very few people who actually recognized Mavis's contribution to the battle against the Cyrdian Cubes. He was one of the few people who actually saw that Mavis was trying to do the right thing.

Hector grabbed Josiah's shoulders, "Are you telling me," he growled, "that you're going to let some _girl_ decide our fates? Are you saying that we will simply stand by and watch, as a single person brings doom upon our entire nation? You talk to me as if I'm not trying to save lives. I am trying to save lives! I know the difference between a million lives, and all of the lives! Use the Galvanor!"

Josiah glared at Hector, but finally decided to tell him what he wanted. "Fine," he growled, "I'll use the Galvanor, but _only_ if she gets into the bridge. Otherwise, the Galvanor is staying right where it is right now. It's not going anywhere."

Hector's shoulders relaxed a little. "Alright," he said, "good."

* * *

Mavis blew up another security drone. Her blood was boiling. She had never felt this alive since a while ago. She was more awake than ever. Battle was like her sleep. Sleep was like her workout. They were interchangeable at this point, honestly. No matter. Mavis absorbed another direct rocket hit from a soldier nearby, snapping his neck and throwing him aside.

Behind Mavis, Johnny was definitely getting more tired. He was still defeating soldiers and sending mechs flying with ease, but his stance was becoming more and more slumped. His eyelids looked heavier. Even his breathing was growing dim. In the back of Mavis's mind, she felt Johnny's life force weakening, but for the first time, she actually recognized something that was more important.

The Galvanor.

Ahead of Mavis, behind a row of six mechs and a line of security droids, were the massive blast doors that led into the bridge. The thing that was in the bridge was what Mavis was interested in. The Galvanor was in there. And according to her extrasensory perception, so was Josiah and Hector. Mavis wasn't so sure about killing either of them. Josiah was an intelligient person, and he had sincere interests, and Hector seemed so childish when Mavis first met him that she almost felt bad for even fighting him in the first place. It was like wrestling with a two year old brother.

But none of that mattered. As Mavis began to charge the line of security mechs, she had only one thing in mind. Get the Galvanor, destroy it, and figure out what to do with the Gordian Empire after that.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Just reached mexico for Spring Break Vacation today, while writing chapter 119.**


	121. The Entity

Mavis burst into the room, smashing open the blast doors with one hit, and sending the first row of soldiers and security officers flying back. The bridge was at its highest point of security at that moment. Soldiers were lined up behind seats, control panels, and barrels that they had set up. Three mechs stood with their laser blasters pointed right at the entrance. But none of them were fast enough.

Mavis whizzed in, her eyes immediately spotting the Galvanor, located in the hands of Josiah, who was clutching a pistol that was pointed right at her face. Mavis flew through the soldiers, tearing them apart as she passed them. Behind her, a very tired-looking Johnny stumbled around, electrocuting anyone who got close to him. As Mavis closed in on Josiah, however, she heard Hector yell, "NOW!"

A cage of some sort of glass came out of the ground, right underneath Mavis, locking itself in place and trapping Mavis in her position. Mavis stopped running, finally coming into view of Hector, who had been tracking her with the Gordian Empire's most advanced tracking systems. "Josiah," said Hector, "activate the Galvanor. You said that you would do it if she came in. Now she can't do anything about it. ACTIVATE IT!"

Mavis punched the glass once. It was a tough material, but Mavis could feel its weakness. She punched it yet again. This time, she felt the molecules within the glass slowly begin to dislodge. "Josiah, that's an order!" yelled Hector, "activate the Galvanor, or you'll be convicted of treason! Activate the Galvanor, and you'll become the greatest hero to go down in history!"

Josiah locked eyes with Mavis. Mavis saw...was that doubt in his eyes? Before Mavis could even question what she saw, Josiah turned to Hector, "you'll have to convict me of being a traitor then," he said resolutely, "I'm not touching the Galvanor. It's too dangerous."

Hector's face quickly turned to a deep shade of purple, like an overripe grapefruit. "Why...you little...fine, I'll do it myself then." he said. He marched over to the Galvanor. Josiah gripped his gun and pointed it right at Hector's forehead right before he reached it. "No," he said, "step away from it, Hector. You don't know what type of power that thing holds. I already regret building it."

Mavis punched the container yet again. This time, a small crack formed in the place she had punched. Another punch caused the cracks to grow wider. In front of Mavis, Hector waved his hands, and one of the soldiers shot Josiah in the leg, causing him to go down with a cry of pain. Hector smiled cruelly, "you're too soft, Josiah," he said, "I prized you for your intellect, but your compassion for others make you weak."

Josiah spat at Hector's feet, but Hector didn't seem to care, for the first time. He turned to Mavis, who struck the glass again, this time completely shattering it. Behind Mavis, Johnny had been stunned by some of the soldiers. He was literally too tired to fight anymore. Mavis charged straight at Hector, but before she could get to him, a second glass cage fell down, completely encasing her.

Mavis roared with frustration. Hector grinned, "You were foolish, thinking that you could even stand a chance against me," he said, "I have the resources, I have the leadership, and I have the guts to do everything that you can't. Say goodbye to your source code, Mavis Dracula."

Hector leaned over, and pressed the big red button to the side of the Galvanor. Immediately, a female voice spoke out from it, _Galvanor 1.0….energy input successful….what would you like to alter, Hector Chie?_ Hector didn't even hesitate when he said it, "Delete Mavis Dracula, the girl who's sitting a few feet away from me, from the source code, Galvanor."

 _As you wish_. The Galvanor began to whir and glow, its sides beginning to spin. Mavis sighed. So this was how she was gonna go down. She glanced back at Johnny, who was now unconscious, having been stunned by one of the soldiers in the bridge. Outside, Mavis could feel Fubuki's unconscious body drifting in space, with Quintus trying to revive her. This was how she was going to die. Floating in space. The one person she loved, almost dead. The one person she regarded as a friend, gone. Surrounded by enemies and people who thought that she was a terrorist.

Mavis closed her eyes, as she began to feel her body heat up. Her eyes began to glow green. Her legs began to feel as if they were melting. This was definitely a weird way to die, if anything. Getting erased from reality. Something that should be painless, but certainly wasn't according to what she was feeling right now.

Mavis opened her eyes. Everything was silent. Everything was quiet. She was standing in a perfectly cubical, white room. On one side of the room, there was a blue sphere of light, pulsating and glowing. On the other side, there was a red sphere of light, this one emanating numbers and words.

Mavis looked at her hands. She was completely unscathed. Is this what getting erased from reality led to? What was this place? Mavis walked over to the blue sphere, and was instantly greeted by a voice coming from it, "Yes...yes...ah...a little more blue...more red...there we go…why not some indigo...yes, yes, those diagonals are perfect...perhaps a little more light…"

Mavis turned her back to the blue sphere, briskly walking over to the red sphere. This place creeped her out a little. At the red sphere, she heard a more high-pitched, quizzical voice, "Fifteen to the power of sin theta squared multiplied by the integral from the square root of negative one to the inverse of pi is equal to the julia set defined from the inverse of pi to riemann's constant."

Mavis began to slowly back up. She didn't like either of these voices, but at the same time, she immediately recognized what made them different. The blue one was subjectivity. The red one was objectivity. Both were in the room, but were on opposite sides of it. A voice suddenly boomed down at Mavis, causing her to spin around in alarm.

"What is this?" the voice was deep and mechanical, as if coming from a robot grandpa, "Is this the person who I'm supposed to...ah...yes, I suppose you are…". Mavis frowned. What was this? "See, Mavis Dracula…" the voice paused for a second, "according to what I've just received in my logs, I'm supposed to erase you from reality permanently, which is an awfully tiresome task…"

This startled Mavis. "You mean I'm not already erased from reality?" she asked, "you mean I still exist?". The voice didn't respond immediately, but did after a while, "Yes, you still exist...although not materialistically. You, as of right now, have become a _Zenith_ , or an unmarked soul. Your body is gone, but your soul is still in the universe….now….how do I get rid of your soul again...ah, here we go."

Above Mavis, she heard something that was unmistakably a robot's version of yawning. "You sound tired," commented Mavis, "why? I mean...controlling the universe and having unlimited power can't be _that_ boring, can it?"

"Oh, it's not that," said the voice, "do you know how the Galvanor works, Mavis Dracula? I'll tell you how. The universe, on its own, is governed by the laws of reality. But the laws of reality are not actually laws, but a sentient being…" Mavis interrupted, "you mean like god?" she asked. "No...god is something that is much greater than reality," said the voice, "but anyways...this sentient being...you mortals call it the entity. Anyways, the entity is dormant, never awaking and never being capable of waking up. He is trapped in an eternal slumber. What the Galvanor does is create a copy of it, which is me, and use it to alter the universe. I am, essentially, only a copy of reality…"

There was a note of sadness to the voice. Mavis decided to ask another question. "Where are we?" she asked, "I mean...are we still in the universe?"

"No," said the voice, "we are in the meta-universe. A universe separate of reality."

"I see…." Mavis nodded slowly, but still didn't really get it. Mavis suddenly felt something. She looked up, right as a _thing_ came out of the ceiling, and whizzed right at her. Mavis rolled out of the way, and the thing went through the floor. Mavis blinked. What was that? "Uhhh…." Mavis backed up, "what was that?" she asked, "are you trying to get me or something?"

"Yes…" The voice said grumpily, "and you're making it very difficult for me, Mavis Dracula….just accept your fate already…" beams of light and pillars began to fall from the ceiling, each one melting through the ground. Mavis dodged all of them. Spikes and pillars of rock began to fly everywhere. Mavis's reaction time was good enough to either block off or dodge everything that came at her.

"You know, I thought that capturing me would be easy, for being the entity that controls reality," said Mavis, "what makes it so difficult?"

The voice didn't exactly seem offended, but made a noise that sounded an awful lot like snorting, "Don't make me laugh," said the voice, "you have no idea the power of reality...it's just that I'm so _sleepy_...I can't seem to catch you...even though I should…". Another yawn. Right as a few more beams of light came at Mavis, which Mavis dodged easily.

"Grr….fine, time to actually put in some effort," said the voice. Thing came at Mavis at much faster than what Mavis was used to. Capture beams came after Mavis, going at several million times the speed of light. Mavis was surrounded on all sides by these capture beams, but quickly phased through the wall of beams by going faster than them. As time went on, the voice began to sound more and more frustrated.

"Ugh...fine...you really asked for it…" murmured the voice, "time to really try…"

Things began to move even faster. The ground itself began to turn into quicksand. The beams of light began to move at several quadrillion times the speed of light. This was the fastest that Mavis had ever ran. She sprinted as hard as she could, avoiding the capture beams at every point and angle, all while throwing insults at the voice. Mavis knew that even she would probably tire out in the end. But at least she would have the last laugh.

"What's wrong?" asked Mavis, "can't get some little girl that appeared on your doorstep? You know, for the entity that controls reality, you're quite weak. Get some protein bars, they'll probably help you get me faster…" The voice began to grow even more frustrated, until he finally yelled, "ENOUGH!"

Time froze, but the beams kept moving, and so did Mavis. Mavis knew how to run faster than time. She did it once with Cedron, she would do it again with the entity. By now, Mavis was starting to slowly tire out. She couldn't hold this for much longer. She was going to die very soon. She could feel it. She could….feel…..it…

"Fine," growled the voice, this time completely devoid of tiredness, "this time, you'll surely go down, Mavis Dracula. I don't know how you run this fast, but you certainly are worth the effort! Have you ever heard of instantaneous teleportation, Mavis? Nothing goes faster than it, including you...say goodbye to your reality, Mavis Dracula…"

Mavis looked over, right as she saw a beam of light come at her. She turned and bolted straight down the room, running as fast as she possibly could. Her legs were melting. Her eyes were dimming. Mavis was getting tired. Getting tired from action. Something that she thought was impossible. Mavis ran so fast, that even her extrasensory perception began to fizzle out. Her mind began to turn to slush. She slowly began to close her eyes…

* * *

"YES!" Dracula pumped his fists into the air, as he watched the TV, which had the words, "Breaking news: Reality Entity defeated by Mavis Dracula" printed over the top of it. It was breaking news in the realm of the dead. Even Murray was surprised by it. "That's my girl…" murmured Dracula, silently smiling at a photo that he kept of Mavis that was sitting on his desk.

"Hey, Dracula, your girl just defeated the entity!" yelled griffin, running into the room, "good job, buddy!". "Yeah, congrats!". "I wish I had a daughter like your's…"

Dracula smiled. It was true, he was proud of his daughter. But even so, her latest achievements would only bring the thing that he feared the most closer to Mavis. The thing that he did not want finding Mavis. The Guardian was still out there somewhere, and it was hunting Mavis. Mavis's latest accomplishment would have alerted the Guardian to where Mavis was.

Dracula turned to his bed. He had to warn Mavis. Before the Guardian found her.

* * *

 **[Mavis Dracula] Lvl: 2,390**

 **[Fubuki] Lvl: 67**

 **[Johnny] Lvl: 68**

 **[Josiah] Lvl: 2**

 **[Quintus] Lvl: 102**

 **[The Entity] Lvl: 2,000**

 **[Crusader-Class Titan] Lvl: 88**


	122. Fear over Love

Johnny's eyes slowly opened, and came into focus. The last thing he remembered was getting stunned by a Gordian soldier. Where was he now? In front of him, he made out what looked something like the barrel of a gun, pointed right at his forehead. His two arms were being held up by strong hands. Rough hands. He heard talking, but it took a while for his ears to focus in on it.

"Yes, yes," he heard Hector saying, "the Galvanor worked. Mavis is gone. We have Johnny in custody right now….yeah, that's what I was thinking. Okay, bye…". Johnny then heard the sound of Hector putting the phone down. He began to breath hard. Hector was still alive. So was Josiah, from the fact that Josiah was laying on the ground a few feet away from him with a bullet wound in his leg. Johnny frowned. He thought that Mavis wasn't fond of guns. She had always called them too ineffective.

Johnny's mind snapped back into reality. His electrical powers weren't working for some reason. His arms were limp and weak. He could barely even feel his own face. As his eyes came back into focus for about the third time, he heard Hector's voice, this time closer. "The Galvanor overheated or something...it's incapable of being used right now. Either way, Mavis seemed to have vanished. We're good now. You can kill Johnny, if you want."

Johnny's eyes glowed. Mavis...gone? Dead? Did the Galvanor actually work? He didn't know, he was knocked out when the Galvanor had activated itself. At the time being, it sounded an awful lot like Mavis had been defeated by the Galvanor. And that was very bad news for Johnny. Mostly because the only reason he still saw value in life was because of Mavis.

Johnny looked up, at Hector, who was now standing in front of him, smiling cruelly. "You think your wife really could've stopped me?" he asked, "you think that your petty girl would have defeated me, the most powerful warlord in the entire galaxy? Bah! I am far above anything that you can even imagine. The Galvanor has brought me victory at last. You will know nothing but defeat-"

His words were cut short, as a massive electricity blew outwards from Johnny. Soldiers screamed as they were instantly and completely vaporized by the initial blast. Hector himself was blown back and heavily wounded, but thanks to his power armor, he somehow survived. The security mechs and soldiers who survived leveled their weapons, and began to fire. It looked as if reinforcements had arrived since Johnny got knocked out. That was good, because that only meant more people to take out Johnny's anger on.

Johnny jumped up, his body glowing with a bright blue aura. His body melted away, becoming pure electricity. Everything within a five foot radius of him got instantly vaporized. He ran at the speed of electricity, destroying everything that came near him. Entire mechs were vaporized, entire squadrons melted to mush. Johnny had never been this angry in his life. He wanted to kill them. He wanted to squash them like bugs.

Hector had regained his stance, and was yelling orders to his men, "Get him!" he yelled, "turn your guns to lethal! Don't let him survive! He's too dangerous!". Too bad that lethal didn't matter at this point. Johnny's entire body had turned into pure electricity, and the bullets went right through him, if not getting melted when getting near him. Hector's orders saw nothing done. The soldiers were either killed, or ran away. A few seconds later, Hector was pinned to the ground, with Johnny gripping his neck. "Tell me," growled Johnny, "what happened to Mavis?"

Hector struggled, but it was no use, "She's gone…" he hissed, "your little girl is gone, Johnny….what are you gonna do, eh? Kill me? That won't-" Johnny snapped his neck. He then waved his hands, and Hector's body exploded into dust. But even as he did this, he knew that Hector was right. Killing him wouldn't solve anything. His newfound strength couldn't bring back Mavis. Was Mavis really….dead?

Johnny glared at the ground. A tear formed in his eyes. How could he be so _weak_. So _powerless_. All this time, he let Mavis take the hits for him. If it wasn't for Mavis, then he would've died a hundred times over by now. He was literally nothing compared to Mavis, Even with his newfound strength. Mavis grabbed a shard of metal from the ground, sharpening it until it was like a sword; nice and pointy. Using his magnetism, he levitated it above the ground, bringing it right to his neck. He closed his eyes. This was it. This was how he was going to go down. On his own terms.

A second passed. Then two seconds. Then three. A full minute. Two full minutes. Johnny stood there, his eyes closed, only an inch away from dying. He could end it all here. But after a while, Johnny crushed the metal shard and tossed it aside. He couldn't do it. He couldn't do what Mavis would've done. Belowdecks, an explosion rattled Johnny back to where he was. He was more annoyed than surprised. What else can be happening that would warrant an explosion?

Johnny flew down into the hangars in his electrical form, and immediately saw what was happening. A fighter was hovering in the hangar bays. As Johnny watched, it opened fire, sending a line of soldiers who were trying to stop it flying. In the cockpit, Johnny saw Josiah, frantically working at the controls. Johnny wasn't going to stop him. He didn't have anything against Josiah.

As the fighter flew out of the hangar bays, Johnny finished off the rest of the soldiers, killing each one as painlessly as possible, using concentrated electricity to vaporize them instantly. He didn't feel like putting in effort into anything anymore. He just wanted everything to die. For the next few hours, Johnny spent the time wandering the hallways of the ship, killing anyone he saw as painlessly as possible. Four hours after he woke up, the entire ship was empty apart from him.

Johnny went to the bridge, punching in a completely random coordinate. He didn't care where he went. He didn't care if he warped into a star. He didn't care about anything at this point. He just wanted everything to end. He needed something to distract himself from Mavis. Something that would allow him to escape. Soon enough, the ship's warp drives powered up, and the _Sunsnapper_ jumped to hyperspace, vanishing from sight.

* * *

Mavis had almost forgotten what feeling tired felt like. In the beginning of her days as a terrorist, she felt tired a lot of times, and she remembered that feeling vividly. The feeling of trying to fight when your muscles simply refused. The feeling of wanting to sleep, but forcing yourself to stay awake. The weird aching feeling that people got in their stomach whenever they ran too much. Lately, all of that had vanished. It had become completely foreign to Mavis. But now, she knew what it felt like. She knew what being _tired_ actually meant.

Every bone, every cell, every microscopic part of Mavis's body was literally on fire. Her vision was blurry. Her stomach felt as if it was about to explode. Her legs felt as if they were melted. All around her, Mavis saw colors. Red, blue, brown, black, even gold. Where was she? Did the voice catch her? Or did she escape, and was returning to the real world?

The lights stopped. Mavis saw a planet come into view. A golden-brown planet. It looked like a ball of caramel. Mavis hated caramel. Either way, the planet was either growing larger, or Mavis was flying closer to the planet. Mavis guessed the latter, but was too tired to stop herself from crashing into the planet surface. Mavis sat there, staring up at the sky above her. It was so _weird_ , what had just happened. Clearly she had survived, but that also meant that she had done something which should've been impossible.

She ran faster than instantaneous teleportation.

Mavis closed her eyes, her breathing returning to normal. She survived. It was okay. Everything was okay. She was okay, the Galvanor didn't work, she was far away from the Gordian empire, she was on a safe planet, Johnny was okay...Johnny.

Mavis sat up straight, accidentally setting off an explosion nearby through her telekinesis. Johnny. What was she thinking? Johnny was unconscious, still on the _Sunsnapper_. She had to reach him. There had to be some way to reach him. Mavis scrambled up, dusting sand off of herself. She still felt Johnny's life force, somewhere out there in the galaxy. He was definitely still alive. Where he was, _that_ was the real question. And the bigger question was, where was Mavis?

As Mavis looked around her, all she saw was sand. Sand, and the occasional cactus here or there. It looked like a pretty harsh planet. Nearby, Mavis spotted what looked like a skeleton, withered away and crumbling in the sand. It took a while for Mavis's extrasensory perception to kick in, but once it did, it delivered results in an instant. The planet she was on was called "Ragne", and was a relatively small, isolated planet on the border of the outer regions, slightly within the unknown regions. The only people who lived here were bounty hunters and black market traders. And according to her local extrasensory perception, there was a black market only a few hundred miles away from where Mavis was. How convenient.

Mavis floated a few feet off the ground, then accelerated to maximum speeds. She opened her eyes, and she was at the entrance of the black market. Mavis grinned a little to herself. Her new teleportation abilities were quite efficient, even though they may be a little tiring, judging from the fact that her legs were aching a little more now.

Mavis went through the cloth that separated the black market from the sand dunes outside, and was immediately greeted by a busy sight. Hundreds of stands, each one packed full with all sorts of different instruments. Weapons, food, spices, cloaking devices, engines, more weapons, and even more weapons. Weapons seemed to be the theme of the black market. As Mavis passed through the area, she saw dozens of bandits and smugglers, walking through the area, buying stuff from the shops.

Mavis was anything but low-profile. Literally everyone in the black market noticed her as soon as she walked in. Mavis immediately heard whispers and hushed talking as she passed by. On the good side, this place was a place where criminals were widely accepted, but on the bad side, this place was a place where criminals were widely accepted. Mavis was about five times more likely to be attacked here by bounty hunters than anywhere else. She must've gained quite a bit of fame after her attacks against the Gordian Empire.

Sure enough, just as Mavis predicted, she soon felt a group of people following her. She decided to play along. She walked through the crowds, and stopped by a tavern, opening the door and walking in. She felt the people who were following her also enter into the tavern, and approach her. One of the people reached out, about to grab her, when Mavis swung back, her fist connecting squarely with the bounty hunter's nose.

The bounty hunter flew back, smashing so hard against the door that the hinges blew straight off. The other bounty hunters grabbed their guns and opened fire, but it was no use against someone of the caliber of Mavis. With a snap of Mavis's fingers, all five of the other bounty hunters dropped dead, their necks twisted at oblong angles.

It was quite a scene for the rest of the tavern, mostly because everyone recognized Mavis. The bartender looked as if he was about to faint when Mavis approached him. "I need some way to send out a radio signal without the chance of it being tracked back to here," she said silkily. To prove her point, she placed her hand on the bar counter, and punched a hole right through it, "get me someone who can do it. Now."

The bartender looked as if he was about to crap himself. He nodded, falling over while scrambling out of the room. There was a moment of silence, before everyone else in the room resumed their talk. Mavis felt several of them shoot her funny glances. A few minutes later, Mavis heard noise coming from the back of the bar.

"What do you mean, 'Mavis Dracula is here'? You're talking a load of doxy crap, Edwin! I'm tellin' you, if this is another stupid prank...alright, alright…" Mavis saw the bartender, Edwin, walk through the door, followed by a grumpy-looking dwarf, who hobbled in. As soon as the dwarf saw Mavis, his eyes grew round, and he began to make a weird squeaking sound.

"M...Mavis Dracula, here?" his voice sounded ecstatic, "It's...it's all my honor, Mavis!" Mavis watched as the dwarf scrambled forward, and shook her hand profusely, "I heard that you need a way to send out a hidden radio signal? I will be happy to do the job for you!" in the back of Mavis's mind, this dwarf immediately reminded her of what Hector seemed like when she first met him: a little boy. But even so, she nodded, "Yeah," she said, "I need it, and I need it very soon. Can you get the job done?"

The dwarf nodded, "Of course I can, Miss Dracula," he said happily, "you've got the greatest radio engineer at your service right now! I would work for the Gordian Empire, if they didn't kick me out of their ranks for being too smart, obviously…anyways, I'll get working on it immediately." Mavis nodded, and the dwarf scrambled out of the room, mumbling to himself, "Mavis herself...I'm working for Mavis!"

Maybe Mavis really was a little more famous than what she thought she was. Mavis sat down at one of the tables, and was immediately served the most expensive wine and the best food that the tavern had for free. The waiters that gave her the food looked terrified as well. Mavis leaned back, sipping her wine. Sure, she was feared. But sometimes, being feared was more important than being loved.


	123. Plans for the Future

Mavis was listening in to the news channels of the Gordian Empire yet again. It was the usual news. The bounty for Mavis had dropped completely, since Mavis was believed to be dead by Hector. This was completely false, as everyone in the black market knew by now, but they were all too scared to say anything, since Mavis were keeping them all in check with an iron fist. She had acquired the best room in the local inn for free, and beat up a few more bounty hunters the day after arriving at the black market to prove her point. By then, Mavis had started to talk with a few of the people who were hanging out at the taverns. Most of them were either bounty hunters, or smugglers, but most of them were more interested in Mavis's story, which she could only tell in a limited fashion to protect Johnny's whereabouts.

The dwarf, who Mavis had found out was named Greg, had become the envy of the entire black market. Mavis had promised to pay him in 500 tons of solid gold, something that would easily disbalance the galactic gold trade. This had spurred Greg to work even harder on the radio, and he had announced to Mavis just this morning that the radio would be ready two days in advance.

"I spent all of last night working on it," he spluttered, washing his hands, which were covered with oil, "believe me, Miss Dracula, this radio will be the finest radio you've ever laid your hands on. Nothing will ever beat it!". Mavis _was_ confident in Greg's ability to build a good radio. Not only was she paying Greg in gold bars, her mere presence was enough to get him working above standard conditions.

Mavis also had to protect Greg. There were several other radio engineers in the black market who took Mavis's decision very personally, and took it out on Greg. Mavis had to beat up fourteen thugs who the radio engineers had hired to beat up Greg, right before Mavis marched up to the other radio engineers and burned their homes to the ground. Mavis wasn't only doing this to protect Greg though. She needed to make her position in this place clear to anyone who felt like challenging her. Sure enough, everyone else in the black market was treating her like a queen at this point. There was literally no opposition.

Just that day, however, Mavis heard some troubling news. The _Sunsnapper,_ the very same ship that Mavis was on only a few days ago, had vanished, and security footage showed that Johnny had killed everyone else on board, and had assumed full control of the ship. Even more disturbing was the knews of Fubuki and Quintus. Mavis heard news that a few farmers on the planet of Urimork had reported screams coming from an abandoned shed. Spy drones revealed that the screams were actually coming from Fubuki, who was apparently being tortured by Quintus for her "failure to prevent Mavis from entering the Sunsnapper".

So Johnny, Quintus, and Fubuki were all still alive. Mavis knew what she needed to do. She needed to find Johnny, then track down Quintus and Fubuki. She needed to kill Quintus for sure, then try to bring Fubuki back. If that didn't work, then Mavis would have to….kill Fubuki.

Those words still sounded strange to Mavis. Almost alien. She didn't want to face the possibility of it, but she had to in the end.

As Mavis sat in the Tavern, one afternoon, she noticed Greg clambering through the doors. There were the usual sour glances from his peers that he always got now, but Mavis wasn't too bothered by them. Greg ran up to Mavis, bowing, "Miss Dracula," he said excitedly, "I've just completed the radio transmitter. It'll be ready tonight, after it's finished charging. I just wanted to tell you, as a forewarning."

Mavis nodded, without smiling. She stood up, "Bring me to it," she said, "I want to see it. Now.". Greg nodded, partly terrified and partly honored. He led Mavis out the Tavern, bringing her through the winding streets, until Mavis and Greg were standing in front of Greg's workshop. Mavis had been here before, to make sure that Greg was working sufficiently. As Greg led Mavis into the workshop, Mavis saw signs of tighter security. There were traps, security doors, and security droids lining every hallway and every door. Mavis felt kind of bad for forcing Greg into a situation like this, but Greg didn't seem to mind.

"Here it is!" Greg opened a blast door, which slid open to reveal a massive radio dish. There were wires and sensors covering the entire thing. A computer in the corner flashed a display that showed the trajectory, speed, and stealth of the radio signal. Mavis smiled a little. Greg had really delivered what he had promised. But she couldn't afford to show any compassion. "Does it have stealth capabilities?" she asked harshly. Greg nodded, "Yes, it does." he said happily, "the Gordian Empire doesn't have the technology to track these radio signals. You'll be perfectly fine, sending signals from here."

Mavis nodded. She walked over to the display, watching the screen. On it was a progress bar, with the battery level of it slowly rising, percent by percent. At the moment, it was at 65.78% battery capacity. Greg quickly noticed this, and spoke. "The battery has to be fully charged in order for it to have the stealth capabilities," he explained, "sorry if the wait bothers you, Miss Dracula."

Mavis didn't say anything. In reality, she was pleasantly surprised by the efficiency of Greg's work, but on the other hand, she had to maintain her cold appearance to fortify her leadership. "It's good enough for me," she said, "keep working on it, and have it ready as soon as possible. Your payment will arrive after I use the radio with success.". Greg's eyes seemed to pop every time Mavis mentioned his pay, and this time was no different. He quickly nodded, "Of course," he said, "I'll...I'll get back to working!"

Mavis turned, and dissipated into mist, flying through Greg's workshop, and back into the streets. She walked back into her inn room, and sat down on the bed. She needed to find Johnny. She almost had the radio, but the radio was useless if she didn't know where Johnny was. Mavis closed her eyes, her extrasensory perception kicking in yet again. Ever since her ordeal with the voice, her extrasensory perception had become particularly effective.

Mavis immediately saw an image. An image, that was formed by her mind, but was also objective reality. She saw the _Sunsnapper_ , orbiting a barren planet. Mavis frowned. What was Johnny doing here, away from where all the important commotion was? Maybe he thought that Mavis was dead? Another pang of guilt hit Mavis. But she concentrated, and her view immediately zoomed in onto the bridge. She saw Johnny. All around him were the charred bodies of soldiers and crew members. He had killed them all, without exception.

Mavis's eyes wandered the area. Her extrasensory perception told her many things, but she only wanted to know the location. It was 78 degrees in the bridge. The pressure was a little above one atmosphere. The air was made up of a combination of nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen. The ship was moving at 2000 miles per hour at the moment. Mavis shut her eyes. She needed the location…

234, 879, 589. Those were the coordinates.

Mavis opened her eyes, breathing hard. She glanced at the clock that was mounted at the wall. It had only been three seconds since she started. Even Mavis was surprised at this. Her extrasensory perception was getting very powerful now. But she also had a piece of information that was very important to her. She knew the coordinates of where Johnny was now. She knew where to aim the radio signals now.

It was then when Mavis noticed something. There was a weight on one of her pockets. Something that Mavis had not noticed before hand. Mavis reached down into her pocket, and pulled out a Rubik's cube. It was a classical Rubik's Cube. Yellow, blue, red, white, green, and black. Mavis stared. She was about to wonder where the Rubik's Cube came from, when she remembered the conversation she had with Dracula only a few days ago.

What had that conversation been about? Mavis barely even remembered. Something about something known as the Guardian, and a benchmark to power. Mavis frowned, twiddling with the Rubik's Cube. What was the point of giving her a Rubik's cube? There must've been some sort of deeper meaning to it.

But that meaning didn't matter for now. Mavis dropped the rubik's cube back into her pocket, and turned around. She walked to the other side of her room, opening the door and marching out into the streets of the black market. She was going to check on Greg, to make sure that he was making progress on the radio. Then she would go back to her room, and find out what the Rubik's cube was supposed to do.

* * *

"I...I will, master." said Fubuki. Her eyes were blank. Dead, grey eyes that showed no emotion apart from obedience. She knelt in front of Quintus, who was watching her with a careful eye, "I will learn from you, I will work under you, and I vow to serve you to my death.". Quintus smiled. His training had really paid off. Only a few weeks of constant electrical torture, and Fubuki had already learned who to submit to.

"Good," said Quintus, "rise, Fubuki, my new student. You have been forgiven for your many previous failures." Fubuki rose up slowly. Her hair had turned from black to grey, and her eyes no longer glowed with the trademark aura that always surrounded her. Fubuki's beauty was completely gone as well, and her voice was now a harsh scrape.

"What should we do now…." Quintus pondered, pacing the room. All around them, computer screens showed images of the wreckage of the battle that they had been in most previously. An entire sun, destroyed. Nine planet thrown completely off-course, into rogue space. A fully-equipped Gordian flagship was now in the hands of one of their greatest enemies, Johnny. And either for the worst or for the best, Mavis was gone. The Gordian Empire had just released official news that Mavis was dead, but oddly enough, failed to provide photos to prove it. Then there was the missing mathematician, Josiah. He had been declared a traitor of the Gordian Empire, and had a ten billion credit bounty on his head. The new leader of the Gordian Empire was Hector's brother, Hess.

Fubuki stayed completely silent, as she had learned to do in her time being tortured. "How about this…" Quintus waved his hands, and an image of a map of the entire galaxy came into view on the main screen, "We will head around the star system we were just in," he said, "we'll loop around, to the star system of Jurich. There, we can purchase a new stealth ship, get to Johnny, and finish him off. He's nothing but a threat right now, and he's more vulnerable than ever, since he doesn't have Mavis to keep him alive now. We just need a stealthy ship to get to him, or those guns on the _Sunsnapper_ will blow us to bits."

Fubuki nodded silently.

"Prepare the ship," ordered Quintus. Fubuki nodded again, and retreated down to the hangar bays. Soon enough, Quintus heard the sounds of Fubuki fuelling up the ship. He sighed, turning back to the starmap. All around him, the television screens showed news stories of multiple events. Storms, wars, Cyrdian Cube invasions, the Sunsnapper, unusual black market activity, but nothing about Mavis.

"Where are you," muttered Quintus under his breath, "where are you, Mavis Dracula?"

* * *

Josiah came out of warp, flying towards the swampy planet of Durdun. One of his wings were on fire, and his sensors weren't working properly, thanks to the firefight that he had exchanged with the Gordian soldiers. Josiah was flying in the _Wasp_ , a private fighter that he had designed himself. In the back, was all of his work and theorems. All 98 years of it.

Josiah, while in warp, had been debating what to do. He had arrived in the planet of Durdun because it was probably the most off-the-grid and low-key place to hide. Durdun was located in the unknown regions, and was inhabited by nobody apart from the occasional scientist. It was a pretty safe place to hide out in. However, there were more troubling matters to worry about.

One of those troubling matters was the Gordian Empire. Josiah had heard that Hector had died while tapping into the radio, but also heard that Johnny was still alive, along with Fubuki and Quintus. Mavis Dracula had been presumed dead, since she had vanished after the Galvanor activated. Josiah still wasn't still about the Galvanor. Johnny would've destroyed it, right?

The Gordian Empire had even mentioned Josiah himself in one of their broadcasts, calling for bounty hunters to turn him in. Josiah had a fat bounty of ten billion credits on his head, dead or alive. Fortunately, this didn't exactly deter Josiah from much. In fact, it made him smile whenever he heard it. Being infamous enough to have a ten billion credit bounty was pretty rare, and now Josiah had the right to say that he was badass enough to have it.

Josiah, as he flew through the atmosphere of Durdun, turned tapped into the radio yet again. For now, he would listen in, and try to figure out what his next move would be. He needed to find Johnny, or Mavis, if she was still alive, and work with them to defeat the Gordian Empire. It was pretty much the only option Josiah had, anyways.


	124. Electrically Powerful

Mavis walked into Greg's workshop. According to what Greg had just told her about thirty seconds ago, the radio was ready to transmit by now. As Mavis walked into the room where the radio was, she saw Greg, sitting behind the main computer, typing in commands. When he saw Mavis enter, he waved and scrambled over to her, "So, the radio is working properly," he said, "but I'll need to know what type of message you're sending. Like, is it audio, or text, or what?"

Mavis paused. She wanted to say audio for a second, but she knew that if she did, the Gordians would know that it was her immediately, if they even picked up the signal. Mavis sighed, "Go with...uh...text. Yeah, text should work fine. If the Gordian empire picks up the signal somehow, they would recognize my voice immediately."

"A very smart decision," said Greg smoothly, "and what would you like the message to say?" as he said this, he typed a few more commands into the console, and Mavis saw the radio dish elevate itself a few feet. The ceiling opened up, and the dish went up and above the opening. Mavis paused yet again, but knew what to say this time, "Make the text say, 'I am still alive. MD.' That should be good enough."

Greg nodded, "Very well," he said, "and where would you like us to send the radio signal?"

Mavis knew the answer to that one immediately. "Send the signal to the coordinates 234, 879, 589.". Greg began to type in the coordinates, and Mavis saw the radio dish turn, until it was facing the coordinates that Mavis had told him. Mavis knew that the radio dish was facing the right way, because her extrasensory perception kicked in and told her that. It was almost natural by now, for her extrasensory perception to take the extra mile like that.

In a few seconds, Greg pressed the button, and there was a low whirring noise, as the radio dish transmitted the message through space. Greg was silent for a few moments, before he finally stood up from behind his desk, "Alright," he said, "the signal sent, as requested. Now, about my pay…you promised a few tons of gold bars?"

Mavis sighed. She waved her hands, rearranging the subatomic particles within the atoms around her, until a box with 500 tons of gold bars appeared on the opposite side of the room. Mavis snapped her fingers, and the box opened, spilling gold everywhere. She smiled, as she saw Greg's mouth drop open, and watched him scramble forward, thanking Mavis all the way.

Mavis's extrasensory perception suddenly felt something at that moment. At first, she thought it was just herself being oversensitive. But then, she felt it again. A pang of danger. The feeling she got whenever she was about to go into battle. Mavis swung around, grabbing the Gordian spy drone that was hiding behind a crate behind her, and crushing it instantly. Greg looked up, right as he was shoveling gold into his bag. "What was that?" he asked.

Mavis vanished, reappearing right in front of Greg, clutching his neck in an iron grip, "Why was there a spy drone in your room?" she hissed, "are you trying to turn me in, Greg?" Greg was beginning to turn blue, as he clawed at Mavis's hands, "I don't….know….what….you're talking about." he gasped, "I didn't...plan...anything."

He was telling the truth. Mavis dropped Greg, then turned around, facing the twisted remains of the spy drone yet again. It was a T-67 spy drone model, from the Gordian Empire. It had been following Mavis for about two minutes, before Mavis had found it and destroyed it. It had already transmitted its findings to the Gordian Empire.

Mavis cursed under her breath. "Greg," she said, "I would highly recommend evacuating. Right now. The spy drone was from the Gordian Empire. It's transmitted its findings to the Gordians, and they're probably on their way to here right now. Get outta here, and warn as many people as you can on the way.".

Greg looked absolutely terrified. He nodded, scrambling up, still clutching his gold. Mavis turned around, walking out of Greg's workshop, back onto the streets, and looked up at the sky. For now, there was nothing from the Gordian Empire, but Mavis wasn't willing to take her chances. She knew that the Gordian Empire regarded her as enemy number one, and she wasn't willing to take any chances with that right now.

Mavis turned sharply, marching into one of the illegal airfields, where the black market workers sold their illegal fighters and ships. Mavis walked up to the most expensive ship, ripped off the padlock that locked it in place, and tossed it aside. She then clambered into the fighter, and revved up its engines. Soon enough, she was rising off the ground, slowly going towards the atmosphere. Mavis knew what she had to do now. She had to find Johnny, meet up with him, and figure out what to do about Fubuki and Quintus. And while she was doing that, she had to make sure not to get killed by the Gordians.

* * *

Hess wasn't sure if his eyes were playing tricks on him. He was pretty certain that he just saw Mavis Dracula, alive, from the footage that a spy drone had just sent his intelligence officers. He stood there, replaying the footage over and over again. Sure enough, it looked like Mavis, it sounded like Mavis, and it looked like something that Mavis certainly would've wanted to do.

Right now, Hess was surrounded by his senior officers and commanding officers, who were looking at him expectantly. "Well?" asked one of the officers, clearly annoyed by how long it was taking for Hess to come up with what to do, "What should we do, sir? Clearly, Mavis is still alive, and is on the planet of Kurir. We have some patrols only a few light years away, and we can send them in at a moment's notice. We just need your confirmation."

Hess replayed the footage for the last time, before shutting the television screen off, "send in those patrols," he said, "call in the marines nearest to that planet, have them raid the city that Mavis was in as well. Capture this...Greg, and sending our best reserves to the coordinates that Mavis had just sent that radio signal to. It probably leads us right to Johnny, and if we can defeat Johnny, then we'll strike a pretty hard blow against Mavis. It'll be an easy victory from there."

"Yes sir." one of Hess's senior officers pressed a button on his side desk, "Yes, this is Admiral Pollok," he said into it, "Yes, we need you to warp somewhere. To be exact, warp to the coordinates that I will be sending you in a few seconds. Those coordinates should lead you directly to Johnny. You are to engage and kill him as soon as possible….yes, yes, I know that. Okay, thanks."

The officer lifted his finger from the mic button, and turned to Hess. "Our reserves in the Filljiah system have just been alerted," he said, "they will be sending out their troops to Johnny's location. If everything works out as planned, then Mavis will arrive at Johnny's location a little after our reserves arrive. Hopefully they can do a good job of it."

Hess nodded hesitantly. To be quite honest, he wasn't quite sure if sending ordinary reserve soldiers would be enough to defeat Johnny or Mavis. He had only heard stories of how powerful they were from Hector, but Hector often blew things way out of proportion, so it probably wasn't a good idea to trust everything that came out of his mouth. "Also send the non-reserve marines," he said, "I believe that there is a military outpost in the Mining Fields of Fillijiah. Send them."

The same senior officer who had alerted the reserved nodded, and turn back to his control panel, sending out messages to the non-reserve marines at Fillijiah. The atmosphere in the room was quite intense. Everyone in the room, from Hess, all the way down to the two security guards who were watching over the door, thought that Mavis was killed. Now, they had just received news that this was false, and that she was actually alive. It was a big slap to the face. To Hess, it went way more personal. His brother, in that case, had died for nothing.

* * *

Mavis came out of warp at the coordinates that she entered into the fighter that she stole. In front of her, a relatively large sun shined brightly in the starkingly silent space. Mavis was flying right above a barren, rocky planet. It was completely red, and Mavis associated it immediately with the planet of Vordania, thanks to its red sand. Mavis didn't like it already. It felt evil.

But if her extrasensory perception was correct, it was also the place where Johnny was. As Mavis flew around the planet, she finally saw it. A massive warship, in orbit over the planet, on the other side of the planet. It's engines appeared to be off, and it was just drifting. Mavis's heart pounded. Johnny was on board that ship. She could already feel his life force within her, growing more and more resonant as she grew nearer.

All at once, Mavis sensed it. The guns on the _Sunsnapper_ suddenly activated and swiveled around, facing her. They fired, sending artillery shells flying at Mavis. Immediately, Mavis's reaction time kicked in, saving herself and the ship. She flew through the dense wall of explosives and missiles, all while cursing herself for her own stupidity. She should have known that Johnny would've naturally retaliated if he saw an unfamiliar fighter approaching him.

Mavis pressed a few buttons on the control panel of the fighter, and released the windshield valve. The entire windshield of the fighter burst outwards, and Mavis was sucked out into open space. This was probably what Mavis enjoyed the most out of everything in her life. Flying through space using nothing but telekinesis. The feeling of weightlessness, combined with the speed, made it exhilarating. At least, when a massive warship _wasn't_ firing shells at you constantly.

A few seconds after Mavis opened the windshield valve, however, Mavis immediately felt a change. The explosions stopped. She saw the guns on board the ship retract and disappear into the ship. Mavis grinned. It really was Johnny on board the _Sunsnapper_ then. Nobody else would stop firing like that when they saw Mavis.

As Mavis drew nearer to the ship, she quickly located the area where she landed last time: the hangar bays. Mavis slowed down at the last second, landing in the hangar bay with a small explosion. As Mavis got up, dusting herself off, she heard the doors open, and saw a blue _thing_ fly out of it, coming right at her.

Mavis's usual instinct when seeing an unidentified glowing object flying at her was to defend herself, but something about this seemed safe. Her extrasensory perception told her that it was safe. The blue thing flew right at her, and at the last second, transformed into Johnny, who wrapped Mavis into the tightest hug she's ever received from Johnny. Mavis was both surprised and delighted. She hugged Johnny back, not even bothering to ask any questions.

"Looks like someone got a new power," she grinned, looking up at Johnny, "what _were_ you there? You went so fast! Faster than usual, at least.". Johnny grinned back at her, "it was nothing," he said, "when I woke up, I thought you were dead, so I...kind of lost it. I mean, it's all thanks to you in the end, so don't credit me with anything."

Mavis laughed, punching Johnny on the arm, "Let's get back to the bridge," she said, her smile slightly vanishing, "if my extrasensory perception is telling me the right things, the Gordian Empire is coming after us right now.". Johnny didn't even look surprised. He didn't even stop smiling. "Whatever," he said, "come on, I'll show you what I've been doing…"

Johnny turned back into a ball of electricity, flying through the hallways. Mavis followed, using telekinesis to boost her speeds a tiny bit. Within a few seconds, both of them were in the bridge. And Mavis immediately saw what was different. There were dozens of more computers, each one showing the point of view of a security camera. Mavis also noticed dozens of more buttons, most of which were labeled as "automatic cannons".

"Good, isn't it?" Johnny looked quite proud of himself, "I received the message about you being alive, which is why I didn't open fire on you earlier. Sorry about that, by the way…". Mavis grinned, "Not a problem," she said smoothly, "it wasn't much of a challenge for me, anyways. What's all the computers for?"

"Oh, the computers are just some extra security measures that I've placed on board this ship," said Johnny, "you know, with Fubuki and Quintus running around, I'm not gonna risk the chance of sabotage on board this ship. And also, I've installed a few more cannons, and I've renamed this ship to the _Suncrusher_. Sounds much better than 'Sunsnapper'. Who the hell names a ship Sunsnapper, anyways?"

Mavis was about to reply, when she winced. Before she could say anything, a dozen small Gordian Corvettes came out of warp, opening fire. The massive armor of the _Suncrusher_ was more than enough to protect the ship, but it still caught Johnny and Mavis off guard. The first thing Johnny did was dash over to the control board, and punch in a few buttons. Immediately, the guns that had just been firing at Mavis popped out of the top of the ship, except this time, they opened fire on the Gordian Corvettes. Mavis saw two of the Corvettes explode in the initial blast, but the other ones whizzed out of the way, scattering themselves, and sending random volleys of light attacks against the _Suncrusher_.

As Johnny punched in a few more commands into the console, he turned to Mavis, "I would suggest getting to your fighter," he said grimly, "we got some ass to kick, Mavis."


	125. Inept Leadership

As another explosion rocked the decks of the _Suncrusher_ , Mavis skidded into the hangar bays. She and Johnny had already decided on the course of action that they would take. Mavis would go out without a fighter, and destroy the corvettes using overwhelming telekinetic powers, while Johnny would obliterate any remaining ships with the _Suncrusher's_ massive batteries. Both of them also agreed that suicide was pretty much suicide at that point.

Mavis ran towards the edge of the shields of the hangar bays, using her telekinesis as leverage, and boosting herself out of the shielding. She flew at the nearest Corvette, going at hyperimaginary speeds, and making a direct collision with the Corvette. There was a massive burst of light, as the entire Corvette disintegrated with a single hit. Mavis then turned around, lobbing asteroids, fragments of Corvette, and ice at the other enemy ships.

Johnny decided at that moment to open fire with a fresh volley of artillery shells. The three Corvettes that were the farthest from the _Suncrusher_ were instantly vaporized, and another one relatively near Mavis was completely disabled. Mavis was surprised by the apparent flimsiness of the Corvettes. Perhaps she was simply too used to the massive warships that she constantly fought on a day to day basis.

As Mavis grabbed one of the Corvettes and crushed it telekinetically, she felt a sense of danger run down her spine, right as three of the Corvettes all hit her directly in the face with their main batteries. Mavis temporarily vanished in a flash of flame and light, but reemerged, blasting those same Corvettes to dust as she did.

Johnny, who was in the bridge of the _Suncrusher_ , while launching another volley of artillery shells, got an alert from one of the sensors of the ship. It was detecting a massive object coming out of hyperspace. A massive object, that looked an awful lot like a ship. Out in space, while tearing a hole through another Corvette, Mavis also felt the same presence. Something large was approaching them.

Mavis turned around, right as a massive warship came out of hyperspace. It wasn't the largest she's ever seen, but it was clearly one of their more advanced warships. It was about the size of half of San Diego, and was covered to the brim with guns and missile pods. But it didn't have a chance to fight whatsoever, because within the next second, Mavis had crushed the entire thing into a tin can, and threw it back into hyperspace like a football. According to Mavis's extrasensory perception, it would hit a sun a few light years away.

But that wasn't the only one of its kind. Dozens of more warships were coming out of hyperspace, all around Mavis. Not dozens. Hundreds. Corvettes, battleships, warships, even flagships. Mavis sensed the _Suncrusher_ divert all power to forward shields from behind her. Before any of the ships could even have a chance to fire a weapon, Mavis had released a massive telekinetic wave, knocking all the ships back about a mile.

Almost immediately, the ships retaliated. Artillery shells went flying at the _Suncrusher_ , covering its hull with an explosion of orange, red, and grey. Mavis, however, could feel the fear that was resonating from the ships, and made the very accurate guess that the crew members on board the warships were probably very frightened of Mavis, after seeing what she was capable of on television and through the radio.

Mavis swung around, right as three shells came very close to hitting her, not like they would do anything if they did. All around her, ships were warping in. Soon enough, they were completely surrounded. They had no way of warping out or escaping. Their only way out was to fight, which Mavis was quite used to, but didn't prefer.

As Mavis punched through a few more warships, she quickly took note of the many transport-class ships that were on scene. The ships that weren't armed with any guns, but were large, and probably held soldiers and fighters. Mavis frowned. Were these guys trying to board the _Suncrusher_? Wouldn't it be more efficient to just blow up the entire ship? Whatever. Mavis didn't exactly expect these guys to be very bright anyways.

A few minutes into the battle, one of the larger warships managed to land a direct hit on the _Suncrusher's_ thrusters. One of the thrusters burnt out, leaving the ship dead in space, but the guns were still blazing with extreme ferocity. By then, the Gordians had sustained incredible losses. Dozens of ships, perhaps hundreds of ships, had all been destroyed. Vaporized by the raw firepower of the _Suncrusher_ , or crushed by the telekinetic force of Mavis. But Mavis felt their confidence growing. They were under the belief that she was tiring out. This might've not been true, but it gave the crew members a confidence boost, something that was clearly evident in the pattern of the enemy warship's behavior. They began to take a more offensive stance, battery the _Suncrusher_ with as much firepower as possible.

Mavis growled. She had to find a way to get the _Suncrusher_ out of this one. She had to make a way for it to be able to access warp. Right now, the only thing preventing it from going into warp was the fact that the enemy warships had completely surrounded the _Suncrusher_. And the only way to fix that problem was to cleave a way through the line of enemy warships. Mavis sighed. This was going to be awfully boring.

Mavis began by snapping her fingers. Immediately, the entire front line of warships were blown apart, the ships getting ripped in half and exploding. Mavis waved her hands, clearing the debris to either side, creating a clear pathway through the horde of warships. She then turned around, and practically teleported into the bridge of the _Suncrusher_ , scaring the crap out of Johnny, but not wasting any time with explanations.

"Hit the warp, now!" she yelled. Johnny, without really thinking, punched a button on the control panel, and the _Suncrusher_ jumped into warp, vanishing from sight immediately. Behind them, Mavis felt the Gordian Ships jumping into warp, chasing after them. She sighed. There was more fighting to come, in that case.

As Mavis and Johnny were flying through hyperspace, Mavis turned around, and hugged Johnny again. "You did well in that battle," she commented, "how much did you modify this ship? It seems different in literally every way possible. Did you get technokinesis, like...Techno?". Mavis winced, as she remembered the android who was pretty much family to her. Another reminder of how much destruction her existence had brought.

"Thanks," said Johnny, "listen, Mavis, I have _so many_ damn questions. What happened after they activated the Galvanor against you? Did you survive, or did the Galvanor malfunction? Where did you go after that? How did you find me?" Mavis was bombarded by all of these question at the exact same time, and had to hold up her hand to prevent Johnny from going off on a huge tangent.

"The Galvanor...well, that's a complicated scenario," said Mavis, "I...uh...beat reality, if that makes sense. After that, I reappeared on a black market planet nearby, made a few friends there, used my extrasensory perception to find you, and hired a mechanic to build a radio that I could use to send you a signal to tell you that I was alive. And that seemed to have worked as well."

Johnny stared at Mavis. "You beat reality?" he asked, "but...that's...impossible!"

"Exactly," said Mavis, standing up, "anyways, lets avoid the topic of me beating reality. We have a couple hundred Gordian Warships hunting us right now. What're we gonna do when we come out of warp, and where are we coming out of warp from? I don't want to end up at the capital of the Gordian Empire, 'cause if we do, then we're screwed."

Johnny scoffed, "We're in a warp loop right now," he said, "we're just warping in a circle for now, but when we figure out where to go, I can pull us from the warp loop and bring us there.". Mavis nodded slowly. Her mind was working. They needed something to beat back the Gordian Empire as a whole. They needed something consistent. Something that they could use to defeat anyone in their path. They needed….an army.

Mavis blinked. That was a very strange thought, especially since she was known for defeating everyone as a one-man army. Maybe it was time to form her own legion of loyal soldiers. Maybe it was time to actually start fighting back for real now. If Mavis formed an army...well, that would be bad, because then Mavis would be responsible for hundreds of more death, but it would also be good, because it would definitely make fighting the Gordians much easier.

"Johnny," interrupted Mavis, "you think we should team up with some people and try to form an army?". This question caught Johnny off guard, but he quickly responded with a pretty logical statement. "First off," he said, a little shakily, "how are we going to form an army? Second off, who would work for us, and lastly, why do we need an army? I mean, we're doing fine on our own right now…"

"We need an army," said Mavis, "because we can't fight this forever on our own, Johnny. I know a place where we can find an army to raise. It's the same place I went to to build the radio that transmitted the signal to you. People there are criminals, terrorists, and runaways. No more than us, you know? I'm sure that with some persuasion, they'll decide to join us."

Johnny looked as if he wanted to object, but in the end, he simply sighed and sat back down, "Maybe," he said, "I've also been getting tired of fighting all these battles just on my own. An army sounds pretty good. But how efficient will they be? I mean, a bunch of criminals and thieves probably wouldn't make the best army in the world, would it? It isn't really professional…"

"We can make it professional," interjected Mavis, "I know how to create things out of nowhere. I can arm them. We just need to convince them to work for us. That way, we won't have to fight every damn battle alone. We'll have something else to count on if we're stuck and we need help. An army would be a hell of a lot more effective than going solo every single time."

Johnny slowly nodded, "alright," he said, "let's get going then. What were the coordinates that the planet was at? We'll need those to set our warp on course…"

* * *

Hess had seen alot of things in his career. His past experience had consisted of ruling over the capital planet of Ultimatus. He had never seen warfare, had never seen anything quite on the scale as what he was seeing now. He spent his normal days, levying taxes, attacking people on social media, and protecting civil rights. He had never seen war, never seen blood, and has never even stepped foot into a military installation before.

Then Hector died. And here Hess was, sitting in the bridge of the main Gordian Flagship, the _Evicerator_ , the largest ship the Gordian Empire had ever built. 1,000,000 guns, missile pods, and over 4 million fighters were stored belowdecks. All around him, officers and crew members were scrambling around, yelling orders. His senior officer was watching him, waiting for a response.

"Sir?" Hess heard his senior officer ask, "what should we do now? Our warp trackers have just shown us that the _Suncrusher_ had switched course to the black market planet that Mavis was just in. Should we pursue them?". Hess paused for a moment. His mind wasn't prepared for war. He had never even _seen_ an explosion until now. "Um….yes," he said, "move our ships into position around that planet. Prepare our transport craft immediately."

"Yes sir." The senior officer pressed the mic button on his control panel and said into it, "prepare the transport craft and alert the marines that they will be going into battle in a few hours. Have all of our orbital bombardment cannons at the ready, and prepare our Corvettes for escort."

A garbled voice came back through the mic, and the senior officer turned to Hess, "Our men have been alerted," he said, "we will be landing at the DZ in about two hours. Should I prepare the close range and anti-fighter point defense cannons as well? I would suggest so, since we don't know if they're going to use fighters."

Hess was terrified, but he nodded, "Yes," he said, "go and do that."

"Sir!" one of the communications officers from the side yelled over to the senior officer, "I just recieved a transmission from one of our farm planets in the far outer regions! They say that they're being attacked by pirates! They're requesting immediate backup and support from our military, but none of our ships in that region are there, since they're all in this convoy."

The senior officer waved his hands, "That is a minor issue," he said harshly, "an agricultural planet means nothing in the scheme of the entire galactic empire. Stay on course, do not deviate from our current track.". Hess, however, heard this, and retaliated immediately, "what do you mean, do not deviate from our track?" he asked, "we must help them!"

The senior officer looked as if he was about to puke, "Sir," he said, his face turning a slight shade of purple, "with all due respect, we can't afford to break off our men when we're about to defeat the biggest threat to our empire. Saving some nobodies on an agricultural planet is not the worth letting Mavis and Johnny escape!"

Hess waved his hands, "I must help them," he said, "they are hardworking farmers, and they provide to our nation. It is only natural that we return the favor. Divert one of our flagships to the agricultural planet, and have those pirates crushed! If I don't do it, then I'll be letting them die for no reason. That is not how I'm going to lead."

The senior officer was definitely about to puke. He sighed. "Very well, commander," he said.

Hess turned back to the bridge windows, watching the bluish-grey background of hyperspace. He outnumbered his opponents, he outgunned his opponents, he overpowered them in every way possible. His men were well-trained, well-armed, and well-fed. They were ready to fight. Everything was ready to go. Everything looked as if it was ready for battle.

So why did Hess feel as if he was about to lose?


	126. Marketer's Army

Mavis smelled the problem before she saw it. As the _Suncrusher_ came out of warp right above the black market planet that Mavis was just on, the first thing that Mavis saw was the black market, filled with smoke and debris. Bounty hunters and tavern workers were clashing with the Gordian security troops, who were storming through the streets, demanding answers on what Mavis's plans were. Mavis cursed. She should've known that the Gordians would attack.

As the _Suncrusher_ began to slowly enter into the atmosphere, Mavis turned to Johnny, and quickly explained to him what was going on on the surface. Johnny didn't seem to really worry much about it. He simply pressed a few buttons on the control panel, and said, "Well, nothing new, right? Just more fighting, as usual.".

As the _Suncrusher_ went through the atmosphere, Mavis immediately spotted the area where the battle was the most intense. The center of the black market, right outside the inn where she stayed for a few days, was the front line of the black market workers. There, a line of bounty hunters and pirates had set up a defensive line, and were holding the security troopers back, but Mavis knew that it would only hold for so long.

Mavis heard Johnny press another button on his control panel, and turned around in time to see Johnny look up at her, "The ship's on hover," said Johnny, "it's not going anywhere. Come on, lets kick some Gordian ass.". Mavis nodded, and the two of them ran out of the bridge, sprinting down the hallways, and into the hangar bays, where both Johnny and Mavis leapt right out of the shields.

The battle below them had reached its height right as Mavis landed, sending a shockwave blasting outwards from herself, killing several security troopers. Around her, the battle raged. On one side, the people who were in the black market were hiding behind stands and inside shops, throwing grenades and spraying the hallway with heavy machine gun fire. On the other side, a solid block of security troops, armed with energy shields and assault shotguns, were slowly advancing through the corridors.

As soon as Mavis had landed, however, Mavis immediately heard voices yell out her name. She grinned. She may be a terrorist to the Gordian Empire, but she was a hero to the people who worked here. She charged forward, barreling through the front line of security troopers, tearing them to shreds. Johnny also jumped in, turning into a blue-yellow ball of electricity that flew around, destroying everything that came near him.

"Come on!" Mavis's voice resonated through the entire city, being magnified a thousand times over through telekinesis, "push them back through the gates!". The marketers roared, charging forward, their weapons blazing, screaming insults and taunts at the enemy security troopers. Mavis and Johnny led the way, destroying everything that they passed. As Mavis turned a corner, she saw a dozen pirates, tied up, with a line of soldiers standing behind them with their guns pointed to the back of their heads.

"Stop or we'll-" the lead security trooper didn't even finish his sentence. Mavis waved her hands, and snapped all of the troopers' necks instantly. Above them, the _Suncrusher_ casted a dark shadow over half of the city. Mavis saw Johnny reach down and press a button on a wrist panel that he built, and saw the _Suncrusher_ suddenly activate its guns and open fire, sending artillery shells flying into the security troopers' lines.

About half an hour of fighting later, Mavis saw herself right at the front gates of the market city, with the last stragglers of the security troopers retreating through the gates. There were yells of triumph, as several of the marketers took chase, firing their weapons and lobbing grenades at the quickly-disappearing backs of the security troopers.

All around Mavis, the marketers were cheering, clapping, and yelling taunts at the nonexistent enemy. Johnny appeared right next to Mavis, smiling wearily. He had a small cut above his eye, but otherwise seemed fine, apart from smelling strongly of ozone and burnt metal. Mavis magnified her voice yet again, "My name is Mavis Dracula," she said, her voice carrying out throughout the entire city, "I've come here because I've realized that both of us- Me, and you, the black marketers, are in the same position. Both of us are rejected by society Both of us are enemies of everyone else. I've figured that maybe, we could work together."

There was silence, as the marketers listened to what Mavis was saying. Mavis continued, "At the current moment, the Gordian Empire is preparing its forces for a counterattack. They are sending hundreds of warships and troopers to attack this very city. This may seem daunting to you, but I assure you, that I will not allow this city to fall into the hands of the Gordians. There is no point in trying to run away, as doing so will only result in the destruction of your home, your family, and everything you've worked for."

There was muttering and whispers amongst the crowd around Mavis, but Mavis decided to say the last part she was thinking of, "Meet me in Joul's Brewery for the battle plan," she said, after a little bit of thinking, "we can figure out how to survive there.". With that, Mavis cut the voice magnification, and immediately, the crowd began talking amongst themselves. Mavis had chosen Joul's brewery because it was the brewery that had the largest amount of space available.

As Mavis looked around, she quickly saw a stream of people heading towards Joul's brewery, but also saw a second stream of people heading into the airfields. She sighed. She should've realized that not everyone would've taken it to heart to defend the city. But it didn't matter. She had what she had to work with.

Mavis felt Johnny tugging on her sleeve, "Come on," said Johnny softly, "lets get going to the brewery you were just talking about. People are expecting you to make some sort of battle speech." Mavis nodded slowly, walking towards the brewery. Around her, people watched Mavis carefully, some of them following, and others going towards the airfields. According to Mavis's extrasensory perception, about 48% of the population of the black marketers were trying to run away, which _was_ better than what she was expecting.

Joul's brewery was a few streets away, in one of the wider alleys, and by now, was about half-filled with marketers. Some of them sat down at the tables, and some of them were standing. As soon as Mavis walked into the room, all of their eyes diverted attention to her temporarily. Mavis heard muttering and pointing. It's been barely a day since she's left this place, and here she was, back again.

Mavis walked up to the front of the brewery, clambering onto the bar table. Joul, the owner of the brewery, came out, and also sat down at the front row. As Mavis waited, she saw more and more people walk into the brewery. Some of them were bleeding heavily. She saw one bounty hunter who had his left arm torn off. She gritted her teeth. Even more pressure to create a good plan for the Gordian attack. Great.

Eventually, the entire brewery was filled to the brim with people, with some marketers even watching from outside. Mavis decided to begin then.

"Um…." Mavis paused, "So, many of you guys probably remember me from a few days ago…and for those of you who don't, I'm Mavis Dracula. I've returned here because I'm in the same situation as you guys are right now. The Gordian Empire doesn't want me alive. They don't want you alive either. So I figured that we could work together."

Mavis waved her hands, and telekinetically changed the pigment of the air particles around her, creating an image of the entire city from an aerial view, causing several "oohs" and "aahs" from the crowd. "This is where we are," she said, part of the city turning pink, "and this is," the front gate of the city turned purple, "is where the front gate of the city is. That is the point that we must defend under all circumstances."

"How about paratroopers?" asked one of the bounty hunters, "those Gordian bastards can send troops from the sky as well, you know. How're we gonna prevent them from landing like that, eh?". Johnny interjected here, "My ship can take care of that problem," he said. Mavis waved his hands, and a massive section of the map turned green, outlining the _Suncrusher_ , "I can activate it's auto turrets, and it'll blast anything that tries to go by air to oblivion. No, if the Gordians want to attack the city, they're gonna have to go through the front gates."

Mavis nodded, "Alright," she said, "since that problem's taken care of, back to the battle plan. We're going to be splitting up ourselves into five defensive groups. I don't feel like deciding those groups, so you guys split yourselves up right now. That way, I'll get a feel for who should go where and whatnot."

There was the sound of chairs sliding against the ground, as the marketers got up and began to mill around. Mavis saw friends naturally pair up with each other, along with family. Eventually, four armed defensive groups emerged. All of the groups but one of them were relatively large.

"Okay…" Mavis pointed to the largest group, "you guys will be defending the front gates, so get to that position ASAP. The rest of you guys…" Mavis paused for a moment, "the rest of you guys will be on standby. I'll tell you guys where to go and what to do as the battle progresses.". These orders were quite odd, immediately becoming evident as the marketers in the brewery looked at each other confusedly, but didn't question it. All of them knew the powers that Mavis had, and didn't doubt them at all.

Mavis stood there silently for a few seconds, and quickly noticed that the marketers were looking at her with an expectant sort of look in their eyes. Mavis bit back a little. They were expecting some sort of pre-combat battle speech. A sort of morale-booster, something that they could use to encourage themselves in battle.

"Listen," said Mavis, "I know that you guys are wounded, tired, grieving, maybe even dying. I know what all of that feels like. But I need you guys to stay strong. You don't fight for me, you fight for your home. When the Gordians arrive, it isn't my home they're gonna be burning down, it's yours. It's not gonna be my shops they're gonna loot, it's yours. It's not going to be my family they murder; it's going to be yours. Today, you fight not for glory, but for the right to live. Now who's with me?"

As soon as Mavis finished her relatively short speech, there were immediately roars of approval. Several of the marketers stood up, clapping. Mavis grinned, "Alright," she said, magnifying her voice so it carried over the sound of the cheering, "get to your positions. Groups who are on standby, you guys will be staying here, in the Brewery. First group, head to the front gates. Also…"

Mavis waved her hands, and created a earset for each person in the brewery. She waved her hands, and the earsets floated over to each individual person, until each marketer had one. "This earset is going to be my way of communicating with you," she said, "just remember: follow my orders, and everything should be fine. The color band on the inside of the earset corresponds with the group that you're in."

There was a pause, as everyone in the brewery put on their earsets. Soon enough, everyone was ready. "Go," said Mavis, to Red Squad, the squad that was being sent to the front gates, "I'll be accompanying you shortly. Get to the front gates, hold it at all costs, don't let the enemy get through that position. Got it?"

The members of Red Squad nodded, and turned, leaving the brewery and heading towards the front gates. Mavis turned to Johnny, handing him an earset as well, "Go with Red Squad," she said, "you're going to be their leadership for now. I'm going to talk to the rest of the groups. They're gonna serve a much larger role in this battle."

Johnny nodded, not really questioning it. He put on the earset, and quickly followed Red Squad out the door. Mavis then turned to the rest of the marketers, who were still in the brewery.

"Alright," said Mavis, "You may think that you're missing out on all the fun, but don't worry. You guys are the most important part of this army that we have. Just remember. You guys can stay in here, or go anywhere to be honest, until you hear me call you through your earsets. When I do, follow exactly as I say, and we'll be able to secure victory quickly. Got it?"

The three other squads, Yellow Squad, Blue Squad, and Green Squad, all nodded. Before Mavis could say anything else, however, she heard an explosion nearby. Mavis's extrasensory perception immediately told her that Gordian Warships were warping into the atmosphere of the planet. The other marketers heard it as well, and began to look up nervously.

Mavis shifted a little, "Looks as if the Gordians are arriving a little before what I anticipated," she said, "let's go kick some ass, boys."


	127. Teamwork

Mavis ran outside right as the first bomb dropped. An explosion appeared above the city, as the _Suncrusher_ deflected the bomb with its point defense lasers. As Mavis watched, more bombs dropped overhead, most of them probably launched through orbital bombardment, but each one was deflected just as easily as the last by the _Suncrusher_ 's overwhelming point defense lasers. As the bombs continued to drop, Mavis saw the first transports coming down.

They were the classical Gordian transport ships, each about the size of a tennis court, with sleek, grey-painted armor. The transports flew out of the range of the _Suncrusher_ 's point defense lasers, and landed about a mile outside the city, behind a sand dune. Mavis heard an explosion, as Red Squad opened fire with their artillery and long-range weapons. Even as Mavis watched, she saw one of the transports fly too close to the _Suncrusher_ , and get vaporized by the point-defense lasers. Maybe they did have a chance in this battle.

But the sheer number of enemy transports, along with their superior funding and the fact that they were actually legal, gave the Gordians a severe advantage. That wasn't to say that marketers were bad at fighting. Mavis saw plenty of impressively-armed bounty hunters and insane-looking pirates, but they were still seriously outnumbered. By a margin of at least a hundred to one.

Mavis's extrasensory perception kicked in. The first batch of enemy soldiers were on the move. There were 190 of them, along with tanks and mechs. Mavis activated her earset, speaking into it, telling them of the numbers that they were up against. Already, gunfire was coming from the front gates. Mavis heard machine gun fire and sniper shots ring out into the sky. Mavis paused, using her extrasensory perception to locate the primary flagship. She found it. It was quite a scary-looking ship, even larger than the _Suncrusher_ , but it wasn't attacking for some reason.

Mavis turned to the men behind her, "Who here has a jetpack?" she asked. About a third of the room raised their hands. Most of them were bounty hunters, and there were a few pirates here or there. Mavis nodded slowly, "Alright," she said, "prep up your jetpacks, 'cause we're going for a fly soon."

There were some sideways glances, and raised eyebrows, but nobody questioned the orders. Soon enough, everyone in the room who had a jetpack was ready to fly. The ones who didn't, Mavis wasn't really worried about them. She knew how to carry people telekinetically. Carrying an army couldn't be much different. As Mavis thought of this, she was jolted back to reality by yet another explosion. There were yells, that came from the front gates.

As the battle raged on for a few more minutes, Mavis quickly took note of the fact that Red Squad was holding. Johnny seemed to have been doing a very good job leading them. Either way, Mavis wasn't counting on them to win the battle on their own. She signalled to the other three squads, and they quickly followed Mavis towards the edge of the black market city. The front gates were a few hundred meters to their left. The wall that separated the city from the outside sand dunes created a decent sound barrier for them.

"Alright," said Mavis, not bothering to waste time, "we're gonna jump over this wall, blast the Gordian soldiers to shreds, and capture their drop zone. Then I'm gonna destroy their drop zone, make it impossible for them to land, and….we'll figure it out from there.". At first, there was silence, broken by one of the bounty hunters in the group asking, "I thought we were supposed to be defending the city?" he asked, "why are we attacking right now? And how're the people who don't have jetpacks supposed to jump?"

"I can assist using telekinesis," said Mavis, "that should make up for the lack of jetpacks. And we're not going to attack _now_ , we're only going to attack when I think we need it the most. Nobody is going to be able to get through the city in any other way, but Red Squad isn't gonna be able to hold their position forever either. When they need help, we'll jump over, and destroy the Gordian Forces.

It was an incredibly weird plan, but Mavis's voice was so confident, that most of the marketers nodded in agreement as she was saying this. Mavis then turned back to the battle that was raging at the front gates, using her extrasensory perception to give herself a perfect field of view of what was happening.

The battle itself was going alright, the marketers not even showing signs of tiring. Johnny was at the front, tearing anything that came close to the front gates to shreds. A few feet in front of the gates, a group of about twenty pirates had dug a trench, and was holding it down with heavy machine gun fire and missile support. A few weapons smugglers were launching high-explosive shells at the enemy tanks, and a few bounty hunters were sniping enemy officers and captains from the trees. Even with all of this, Mavis saw signs of loss on their side. A dozen pirates were killed instantly as a mortar made direct contact with them. A walker destroyed a machine gun nest. A tank made a direct hit with one of their cannons.

Mavis turned to her group, "I'm gonna head over to the front gates," she explained, "when I tell you guys to go, I need you guys to run at the wall." this was the weirdest order she's ever sent out, but she knew what she was going to do. Before anyone could even ask questions, she said, "when you guys run at the wall, I'll use my powers to lift and launch you guys over the wall, so you can shred the Gordians. I'll send the cue through the earpiece. Got it?"

The pirates and bounty hunters all nodded, none of them too certain. Mavis turned around, jumping over the wall, and landing right in front of the trench line that the pirates had created. She began to block off all the bullets that were coming at the front line, and turned to the pirates, who had stopped firing to stare at her, "Retreat!" yelled Mavis, "get behind the front gates. That's an order!"

The pirates all nodded, scrambling up, grabbing their machine guns and mortars, and running behind the front gate. Mavis slowly began to back up, retreating behind the doors herself. She saw the Gordians approaching. She saw them gaining confidence. Gaining speed. Mavis grinned. She had them right where she wanted them.

"NOW!" Mavis yelled, into the earset. She waved her hands, creating a massive telekinetic wave, that went right under the group of soldiers she had stationed behind the wall, making them ride the wave like a surfboard on an ocean wave. The marketers were lifted up, and were launched over the walls, flying across the sand dunes. Mavis slowed their fall, allowing them to aim their weapons and fire.

As the marketers began to fire, Mavis used her telekinesis. She knew that she could do subatomic manipulation, but she was trying to push her limits on that power. Mavis concentrated, focusing on every point in the general area of the marketers at the same time. Slowly but surely, she located every bullet, every laser beam that was flying out of the barrel of every gun of every marketer in the area. Mavis duplicated all of the bullets by a hundred times, and increased their penetrative ability by fifty each.

Immediately, there was the sound of bullets shredding through metal and armor, and the sounds of the Gordians' screams, as thousands of bullets slammed into them, literally shredding the entire army of Gordians to dust. After a few seconds, Mavis forced the doors open again, and released a massive telekinetic blast, sending all of the remaining soldiers flying back like rag dolls.

"CHARGE!" Mavis roared, running forward. The marketers followed Mavis, thundering war cries and taunts at the enemy. Mavis saw Johnny turn into his electrical form, and whiz forward. This time, the marketers didn't even bother recapturing the trenches. They charged straight through it, going completely on the offensive, killing and slaughtering any Gordian that got in their way. Mavis saw the other group of soldiers also fighting. They appeared to have captured a sand dune, and was using it as their rallying point.

As Mavis went over the first sand dune, she quickly came in sight of the drop zone for the transports. By now, there were at least a hundred transports landing there, with tanks, mechs, and soldiers lining up, raising their energy shields, preparing to receive the attack from the marketers. Even from here, Mavis could see the fear in the soldiers' eyes. Those soldiers outnumbered Mavis and the marketers a hundred to one. They outgunned them as well. But they knew that Mavis was too powerful. And Mavis was there to entertain their expectations.

Mavis jumped, flying up, and right as she was directly above the enemy lines, she shot straight down, bringing her fist down right at the point where she met the ground. There was an eye-blistering blast of heat, and a rush of orange and red, as the entire line of Gordian soldiers were completely wiped out of existence. The flames did hit the marketers, but Mavis willed the fire not to harm them.

"Kill them all!" yelled Mavis, "don't let a single one survive!". The marketers were more than happy to comply. They stabbed, shot, blasted, and incinerated their way through every Gordian soldier that got in their way. Mavis spotted Johnny, in his electrical form, flying around, sending massive bolts of lightning slamming into the Gordian transports, turning them into twisted piles of metal.

But even as they were winning the ground battle, Johnny yelled over to Mavis, "what about the city?" he asked, "we're trying to defend the city!". Mavis had a prompt answer to that, "The _Suncrusher_ should be able to defend the city!" she yelled back, "I just need to figure out how to destroy the enemy fleet…"

Mavis's mind wandered. She needed a way to destroy a massive fleet of over a hundred Gordian warships. She needed a way to blow them all up, without expending too many marketer lives. Mavis knew of one way in which she could do it, but it would actually require her to put in a tiny bit of effort, something that she was not in the mood to do at the moment.

Johnny appeared next to Mavis, "What's the plan?" he asked, "we should retreat to the city, and defend it at all costs! There's no other choice at this point, unless you know of a way to destroy all of those ships with one blow…" Mavis looked at Johnny, and he sighed, staring back at her. "You have a plan to destroy all those ships in one blow, don't you?" he asked.

Mavis didn't answer. Instead, she brought her hands down to the ground, putting as much life force as possible into it. A few miles away from them, Mavis heard murmuring, and felt fear in the air, as a massive, 67-kilometer tall giant made out of sand rose out of the ground. Its eyes glowed solid blue, and the force of a single step from it was enough to cause the ground to shake.

Mavis closed her eyes, taking control of the sand giant. It charged forward, creating a miniature earthquake on the way, swatting a dozen warships out of the air like flies, and grabbing one of main warships and tearing it in half. It was probably the most collateral-heavy thing Mavis had ever created. Every time a single limb of it moved, at least a dozen corvettes would get crushed instantly.

Johnny stared up at the giant, his mouth agape. Next to him, a pirate, who was also staring at the spectate above him, said to Johnny, "this is the most powerful I've ever even _seen_ from Mavis," he said, his mouth wide open, and his eyes as round as quarters. "How powerful is Mavis?"

Johnny sighed, shaking his head slightly, "You have no idea," he said, "if only you knew her like how I do…"

* * *

There were yells yet again, as the sand giant destroyed the second-largest warships in the entire fleet with a single swipe. Hess turned to his senior officer, "Can our weapon do nothing against it?" he asked frantically, sweat beading his forehead, "can we do _nothing_ against a sand giant that our enemy just _casually_ summoned up?"

The senior officer looked as if he was about to puke from Hess's incompatibility, "I've told you," said the senior officer, "our weapons cannot do anything to the giant because of its sheer size. The most we can do is possible slow it down by a few seconds, but I highly suggest taking evasive maneuvers right now, and jumping to warp!"

"But…" Hess looked as if he forgot how to speak temporarily, "Fine!" he spluttered, "jump to warp! Alert the rest of the fleet, before they also-"

Whatever Hess was about to say, he didn't finish it, because the next thing he knew, the entire front half of the _Evicerator_ was blown apart from a swipe from the sand giant. The entire ship shook, and Hess was knocked to the ground, "JUMP TO WARP!" he yelled, scrambling back up, sending a pile of legislative documents that were lying on his table flying.

The _Evicerator_ made a hard turn, and jumped to warp, vanishing from sight.


	128. Fragment of the Past

The battle was won. Mavis knew it even before the guns of the enemy ships stopped firing. Their main flagship, the _Evicerator_ , had been heavily damaged, and just warped out of sight, quickly followed by several of its escorts and Corvettes, but over seventy percent of the fleet had already been decimated by the sand giant. Most of it on accident, obviously.

There were cheers, as the marketers saw the _Evicerator_ vanish, and a few minutes later, the final Gordian warship left in the air had been destroyed by the Sand Giant. A few seconds after that, the sand giant itself dissolved, as Mavis stopped supplying it with life force. It crumbled, creating a massive sand dune in the middle of the Gordian's drop zone.

Celebration that night was something to remember. Mavis had never even seen a marketer party before, but this was beyond her expectations. Drinking competitions, arm wrestling, dancing and singing, one of the bounty hunters even dragged a piano into Joul's Brewery and began to play it, while singing a song in an alien language.

Joul's Brewery, obviously, had become the center point of the entire market. It used to have only been a small-population brewery, but by now, it was filled to the brim pretty much all the time. Joul himself scrambled around, serving liquor to anyone who asked for it, while squealing in his high-pitched voice, "And remember where Mavis Dracula gave her battle speech!"

Mavis and Johnny, obviously, were treated as war heroes. They were literally paraded down the streets, and when Mavis gave her idea of starting a small nation, it was met with immediate acceptance, and a lot of enthusiasm, surprisingly. Several of the bounty hunters and pirates immediately pledged their allegiance to Mavis. By the end of the night, the entire black market declared itself completely independent of the Gordian Empire, under the leadership of Mavis Dracula.

But even so, as Mavis watched the celebrations and the partying, she felt someone grab her shoulder. Turning around, she saw that it was Johnny, who had a serious look on his face. "Come on," he said, "we gotta talk about some stuff.". Mavis nodded, following Johnny into the back of the bar, where he turned around and said, "you know that if we actually do this, we'll be responsible for them, right?" he asked, "you know that every death that comes from them weighs on our shoulders?"

"Yeah," said Mavis. It was true, she had thought of that problem, but believed it to be more important to form her own private army, "But this is going to make our lives so much easier, Johnny. Think about it. We now have people we can _trust_. It's not only us doing all the fighting. We have people that we can work with."

"Okay…" murmured Johnny, "but I'm just saying...we have to keep our guard up right now. One victory doesn't mean much if we lose the war. And also, Fubuki and Quintus are still out there somewhere...I think we should go and find them."

Mavis winced. She had been trying to ignore the problem of Fubuki and Quintus, but now that Johnny brought it up, she couldn't. "Um...yeah," she said, "I was thinking of using my extrasensory perception to locate them, and then we can go alone to fight them. I don't want to bring the marketers in on Fubuki, 'cause that isn't their battle."

Johnny nodded, patting Mavis on the shoulder, "Okay," he said, "just tell me when we can leave in that case. Enjoy the celebrations, Mavis, but still keep an eye out for danger." with that grim note, Johnny walked out of the back of the bar, leaving Mavis standing there, staring at the wall. She cursed under her breath. Johnny was right. She was too caught up in that one victory. She needed to focus on the big picture.

Mavis also came out from the back of the bar, smiling lightly as she received the usual whoops and cheers that always surrounded her wherever she went. Mavis walked out of the bar, silently making her way through the streets into the inn that she stayed in before. She walked into an empty room, and sat down.

 _Concentrate_.

Mavis's vision tunneled, flying through the winding streets of the city, through the front gates, up, through the mesosphere, into space, through the star system, whizzing through millions of stars and comets and other celestial bodies, before finally stopping at a particular star system by the name of Jurich. In front of Mavis, was a mustard-yellow planet. With disgust, Mavis realized that the yellow color came from thick clouds. Her vision tunneled yet again, flying through the atmosphere, revealing a rocky planet, covered with cooled magma and huge iron deposits. Right in front of Mavis, was a well-concealed door.

Behind the well concealed door, Mavis's vision flew through tunnels, pipes, and graffitied walls, until she finally came into view of what looked like an underground hangar. All around her, security troopers lay dead on the ground. There were bullet holes and crates peppering the ground. In the center of the room, two figures were talking. Mavis already knew who they were. The taller figure was Quintus, while the shorter one was Fubuki.

Mavis was taken aback by how much Fubuki had changed. Her once fluid black hair had now turned dusky grey, and her bright green eyes had turned into a pair of dead, black spots. She was nearly unrecognizable. Nearly. Quintus was talking into what looked like a phone in his hands, and the conversation seemed to have been going well. He was smiling confidently as he talked, and he looked as if he was ready to laugh.

"Yes, yes," he said through the phone, "I don't even _know_ why you guys even went against me in the first place. We didn't do anything wrong! Yes, yes...thank you, Hess."

Another voice spoke out through the phone, which Mavis's extrasensory perception quickly caught. It was Hess's voice. "We would be glad to work with you," said Hess through the phone, "of course, our nation is a nation of diversity and acceptance. We do not turn down people like you, as the diversity that you bring is our strength.". Mavis's blood began to turn cold. No way Hess was _that_ stupid, to think that Quintus was innocent. Because if anything, quintus was the _opposite_ of innocent.

Quintus's smile was almost unbearable to Mavis, but she was forced to watch the entire ordeal go down. "Of course," he said, "diversity is so very important in the building up of a nation's strength...I don't even know why your brother went against me in such a way…it's as if we were terrorists, or something."

Mavis snorted. Quintus was much more of a terrorist than she was, if anything. Any respect she once had for Hess had just gone straight down the drain. He was everything she hated. Weak, incompatible, lenient, overly accepting, lacking scrutinization, putting diversity above the safety of his own people. She hated _all_ of it. It was wrong. It was insecure. It was stupid. It was everything that made a _bad_ leader.

There was a click, as Quintus put down the phone. He was smiling. A crazy, lunacy-driven smile that sent chills down Mavis's back. She remembered that this was the person who Fubuki was working for now. This was the person Mavis was up against. And that person had just gotten himself full legality and acceptance within the Gordian Empire.

"Fubuki, come." said Quintus, rising up, "we must attend to an... _interview_ with Hess." Fubuki nodded, Mavis noticing that she didn't say anything. But Mavis also noticed how Quintus said the word "interview". It was as if he was planning something. Mavis frowned. No way Quintus was bold enough to attempt an assassination of Hess? What good would it do him, anyways?

Mavis's question was immediately answered, as she saw Quintus open his bag and pull out a metal cylinder. It had red lines etched across it, and pulsated a soft red glow. Something about it seemed dangerous, and a few seconds later, Mavis realized that Quintus was actually holding a bomb. A very volatile, explosive bomb.

"Heh…" Quintus tossed the bomb up, catching it telekinetically, "I admire how bold the Gordian researchers are...developing such a powerful bomb in such an insecure area. They must've really believed that nobody was bold enough to attack them. Well, anyways….Fubuki….I have a plan…"

Fubuki looked up, not saying anything.

"When we go to the interview with Hess," said Quintus, "I'll be the one talking. You'll plant the bomb in the area right underneath our interview room. Once the interview begins, I'll trap Hess in the room, escape, kill anyone who saw what happened, and you'll detonate the bomb. We can blame Mavis and the marketers for it afterwards, and try to reorganize the Gordian Empire, with ourselves as its leaders."

Fubuki nodded, "sounds like a good plan," she said softly, "when should we begin?"

Quintus grinned. "Right now." he said, an odd glint in his eye. Mavis blinked. She opened her eyes. She was back in the inn, sitting on her bed. In front of her, Johnny was tugging on her shoulder, "Mavis," he said, a crease appearing on his forehead, "you okay? You were starting to...um...smoke a little."

Mavis looked down, and saw that, sure enough, smoke was curling off of her clothing. Her hair was glowing with a faint red aura. But that wasn't relevant to what she needed to do at the moment. "We need to get moving," said Mavis, standing up, "gather the marketers, tell them that we have a job to complete, and tell them to maintain their current status until we come back. Quintus is trying to take over the Gordian Empire."

Johnny blinked, "What?" he asked, a slight edge of incredulousness in his voice, "you mean he's going to try to become the leader of the Gordian Empire? How's he supposed to do that? I thought Hess was the leader."

"He is, but only for now," said Mavis hurriedly, "Quintus just stole a bomb from some sort of top-secret laboratory. He just received full legality from Hess in the Gordian Empire, and got pardoned for all of his crimes. Don't ask me how he did it, either Hess is really stupid, or he can mind control people. Anyways, Hess wants to do an interview with Quintus, so Quintus is going to use the explosive that he got to blow him up."

Johnny stared at Mavis. "Are you sure?" he asked uncertainly, "are you absolutely certain that what you just said is one hundred percent true?". Mavis paused. She knew that her extrasensory perception never failed her, but she also knew that Johnny had his doubts about her abilities, even if he never says so.

"I'm absolutely certain," said Mavis, "but if we're going to stop them, we have to get going, now!". Johnny nodded, getting up, "alright," he said, "I'll alert the marketers of what's going to happen. I'll just tell them that you and I are going to be going somewhere to take care of personal business, and that they need to maintain their current status until we come back. Is that good?"

Mavis nodded, "Yeah," she said, "that should be enough.". With that, Johnny nodded, and walked out of the room, a spark of electricity flying out of his hair as he walked through the door frame. A few minutes later, Mavis heard Johnny announcing what they would be doing downstairs. It sounded as if the marketers were cool with it.

Mavis vanished in a puff of black smoke, rematerializing as a bat, and flew out the window, landing on the rooftop of the inn, staring up at the sky. As she did this, her extrasensory perception forced her gaze towards the star system that Fubuki and Quintus were in. Mavis shook her head. She really had to learn to control her own powers. She didn't like how her extrasensory perception always kicked in randomly, and without any restrictions.

As Mavis looked up at the clear night sky, she was reminded of her home. It took her a few seconds to actually remember the name of it. _Hotel Transylvania_. And Johnny's home, Santa Cruz. It was a grim reminder of how precious a home really was. Even as Mavis sat there, on top of the inn, surrounded by allies, she realized that she had never cherished a place to stay. She always wanted to explore. Wanted to find things that she didn't know of beforehand. She never learned how to accept what she had. Now, her home was gone. Johnny's home was gone. Earth was gone. The milky way was gone.

Her family was gone.

Mavis swallowed, as a tear formed in the corner of her eyes. For the first time in a long time, she felt overwhelmed. Not by how small she was, but by how much she's done in the time span of her life. She had endured the most, killed the most, and survived the most. None of her friends had ever done as much as she did. Except for Johnny, maybe. Mavis smiled. Johnny was always there for her.

"Hey, Mavis."

Mavis jumped, and turned around, to see Johnny also standing there, on the roof. He walked over slowly, "I just told the marketers what they have to do…" he murmured cautiously, "they seemed cool with it."

Mavis nodded, turning back to the sky, "That's good." she said nonchalantly.

Johnny sat down next to Mavis, also staring up at the sky, which was peppered with stars by now. "You're thinking of Earth," he guessed, "you want to go back."

Mavis shook her head, "Earth doesn't exist anymore," she said bluntly, "we have to fight this war...whether or not we like it. We don't have a choice anymore. But its what our friends and family would've wanted us to do."

Johnny was silent for a moment, but also nodded, "Yeah," he said, "it is."

There was silence on the rooftop, before Mavis asked, "Watch the stars with me, will you?" she said, "we can leave tomorrow morning for the Gordian Empire. But for now...lets just enjoy what we have."

Johnny sighed, nodding, "Alright," he murmured, "the stars really are beautiful tonight…"


	129. A Bittersweet Loss

Mavis waved from the bridge of a two-man stealth fighter, to the marketers who had gathered to see her go. It was the morning after, and Mavis had just clambered into the stealth fighter with Johnny, and was prepping the engines for flight. All around them, the marketers were waving their goodbyes. Mavis had set Joul, the owner of the brewery, up as the leader. She left simple instructions for them: maintain what they currently had.

As Johnny pressed a few buttons, testing out the status of the fighter, he announced to Mavis that everything was in working order. Mavis nodded, grabbing hold of the control systems, and waving a final goodbye to the marketers, before activating the engines, and flying off towards the atmosphere. As Mavis looked back towards the black market city, she saw the tiny speck that was the market, surrounded by a sea of red and white sand. It looked surprisingly lonely, for such a lively place.

As Mavis and Johnny flew through the atmosphere, into space, Mavis set coordinates for the capital of the Gordian Empire, Ultimatus. She knew that the interview was going to take place there, because, well, her extrasensory perception told her that it was the place where the interview was going to take place. Johnny activated the stealth systems, so that when the fighter came out of warp, it would be completely cloaked, and Mavis hit the warp lever, causing them to jump into hyperspace.

As they were flying through hyperspace, Johnny quickly took note of the silence that came from Mavis. Usually, Mavis would brief him on some sort of battle plan, or at least talk. She definitely wasn't an introvert, from what Johnny's experience told him. Johnny leaned over cautiously, "You okay?" he asked, "you seem a little quiet...and we're about to go into battle as well. You have anything important?"

Mavis shuddered, "Nothing much," she said quietly, "I'm just a little tired, that's all. And I've also been thinking…my dad came to me in a dream a while ago." Mavis waited for Johnny's response, but all Johnny did was nod. He wasn't really surprised by this. Mavis had been getting a lot of visions lately. It was almost a commonality at this point.

"Anyways," continued Mavis, "he told me that there was this _thing_ in the universe, and in the realm of the dead, they call it the Guardian. Apparently, its supposed to be a...a benchmark of sorts. A benchmark for how powerful someone can become. When someone in the universe reaches a certain point in their power, the Guardian would begin hunting them. My dad was dead serious about it, Johnny. I'm worried that...maybe I've reached that point."

Johnny's facial expression was unreadable, but he gave a quick response. "Don't worry about it right now," he said, turning back to the cockpit, "we have much more pressing things to deal with right now. Remember, Mavis, this...Guardian can be anywhere. If its really hunting you, then its nowhere near us right now, because there's been news about us all over the galaxy these days."

Mavis shifted a little in her seat. She knew that Johnny was probably correct on this one. They were pretty much anything but low-profile these past few days. But even so, that only made it so that the Guardian would find her even faster if it did come across this galaxy. Johnny saw the stress on Mavis's face, and quickly leaned over, kissing her. Mavis's face immediately softened up a tiny bit.

"So," said Johnny, after they both got settled down again, "use your extrasensory perception a little, Mavis. See if you can tell where Fubuki and Quintus are right now. I would guess that they're already at the capital, if our timing is correct right now.". Mavis nodded, and closed her eyes, concentrating. Immediately, the sound of the engines and the warp drive were silenced, replaced by the sound of talking.

Mavis opened her eyes. In front of her was a massive terminal, with huge floor-to-ceiling windows that gave her a perfect view of the space outside. All around her, ships were docking in the hangar bays, and soldiers were marching around. Mavis quickly spotted Hess, looking nervous, with a bead of sweat running down his forehead, clutching a clipboard. As Mavis walked closer, she saw the words "Military budget" written in big bold letters on the top of the clipboard.

Mavis already knew who Hess was waiting for. On the other side of the hangar bays, Mavis saw a relatively small ship enter into the hangar bays. It docked in a reserved docking station, and Quintus walked out of it. The very sight of Quintus sent chills down Mavis's spine. Every time she saw Quintus, she was reminded of her failure to teach Fubuki. But then she realized something else. Fubuki wasn't with Quintus.

Mavis cursed. Fubuki must've been setting up the explosives. That's why she wasn't with Quintus at the moment. Without even bothering to see what happened next, Mavis tore herself out of the vision, and back into her reality. Johnny was watching her with a nervous look on his face. "Well?" he asked, "anything useful? You look a little anxious."

"We have to hurry," said Mavis, "we need to get to Ultimatus _now_. If we wait any longer, then Fubuki will be able to set the explosives.". Johnny was going to point out that the fighter was already going at maximum speed, but Mavis was already one step ahead of him. She concentrated, and Johnny felt the ship go faster.

Way faster.

Johnny and Mavis were both jolted backwards, as the entire fighter accelerated to several million times the speed of light, appearing in the Ultimatus system in less than a second. They went so fast, an entire chunk of the wing completely tore off. Mavis acted fast enough to telekinetically repair the wing in less than a picosecond, and the entire fighter was back into its cloaked form.

Johnny sat back, gasping for air. Mavis's sudden release of telekinetic energy had some nasty side effects on anything in the vicinity, and Mavis quickly winced when she felt Johnny's life force dim considerably. She quickly turned to him, using telekinesis to heal him slightly, "I'm so sorry," she said sincerely, "I didn't mean to-"

Mavis was stopped as Johnny kissed her quickly, catching her completely off guard. "It's fine," said Johnny, "that was one hell of a way to get us to our destination, Mavis. By the way, where in the Ultimatus system are we?". Mavis looked out, towards the windshield. They were in the middle of what looked like a spacial traffic jam. Dozens of commercial space cars were lined up, with security vehicles patrolling the sides.

"I think we're in line to enter Ultimatus," said Mavis, "but Fubuki and Quintus are over there…" she pointed to a space station about five miles away from where they were. Even from that distance, the station itself looked pretty big, with its daunting turrets and heavy traffic of military vessels going in and out. But as Mavis watched, she noticed something. There were some construction droids that seemed to be taking _apart_ the gun installations on the space station.

Whatever. Mavis took control of the fighter, guiding it through the maze of ships, under the stealth of its cloaking systems. They might surprisingly low resistance from the security guards. The shields to the station had even been switched off, and to the side, Mavis saw a picture of Hess, on a space billboard, with the words, "He works for _you_ " on it.

Johnny saw this, and snorted into the control panel, laughing. "What a damn _idiot_ ," he said, "why is he even doing a political campaign right now, when he's the leader of the Gordian Empire? Sounds kinda stupid to me...whatever, only makes our job easier, in this case. He seems to be all about reducing the size of their military."

In front of them, the hangar bays of the station loomed over the two of them. Mavis guided the fighter straight into the hangar bays, and landed it in a free zone. Even Mavis was surprised by the lack of security. She knew that Hess was a very anti-military figure, but she didn't know that he was to such a degree as to completely remove entrance security.

Mavis hopped out, followed by Johnny, the two of them glancing around suspiciously in case of Gordian surveillance. Mavis's eyes glowed, quickly marking the 48 Gordian soldiers who were in that hangar, along with every door, exit, and hatch. She immediately located the room in which Hess would be meeting with Quintus, and pointed it out to Johnny, who nodded grimly.

"Alright," said Johnny, "I'll go watch that room. You can go and find Fubuki. Kill her and take the explosives that she's carrying." Mavis winced at the sound of these words. She still didn't like the idea of killing the person she once held so close. Even the thought of it sent chills down Mavis's spine. It was part of the reason she hated Quintus so much.

Johnny shook Mavis's shoulder, "Hey," he said sternly, "whatever you knew of Fubuki, it's gone. Kill her. It's the only way. Got it?" Mavis looked up at Johnny, and his eyes, which were filled with concern. He was scared that Mavis wouldn't be able to complete the job. He was scared that Mavis wouldn't kill Fubuki if she had to.

Mavis gulped. "I will." she said solidly. Johnny nodded, turning back to the entry point that led to the room in which Quintus and Hess would be meeting in, "Alright," he said, "I'll get heading over. If any of us are in serious trouble, let out some noise that would let the other person know where we are."

Mavis nodded to this, even though she knew that she probably wouldn't be needing it. If anything, it was her opponents who would need an emergency signal. Johnny patted Mavis on the back, and vanished, travelling surprisingly fast, about the speed of electricity, reappearing next to the security doors at the opposite end of the hangars, and walking in.

Mavis sighed. She would have to find Fubuki. Immediately, her extrasensory perception kicked in, locating Fubuki, who was running through a hallway three floors above her. It was surprising, how fast her extrasensory perception located Fubuki. That power was really getting out of hand these past few days.

Running through a door, Mavis entered into a hallway that ran perpendicular to the hallway that Fubuki was in. All around her, posters of Hess, and his stupid slogans were sprawled all over the wall. Mavis growled to herself. Maybe it would be to the Gordians' benefit if Hess died. He was far from competent. He lacked strength.

Mavis flew through the hallway, entering into the hallway she sensed Fubuki in. When she entered into that hallway, however, she saw a dead guard sitting a few feet away from where she was. Fubuki had already passed by this place. She was going towards a different area to set up the explosives. Mavis's eyes glowed, and she found Fubuki, yet again, right underneath the area Hess would be meeting with Quintus.

That was the place they would be planting the bomb. And the hallway Mavis was in was the hallway that Hess and Quintus would be...entering? On the other side of the hallway, the doors opened, and to Mavis's horror, Quintus and Hess came walking out, talking together. Instantly, Mavis had vanished, phasing through the wall, into open space. But she already knew that the damage had been done. Hess didn't see Mavis, but Mavis saw, through the walls, Quintus's eyes narrow immediately. He had seen Mavis. For a fraction of a picosecond, perhaps, but he had still seen her.

But on the good side, Quintus couldn't do anything about it. He continued on his path down the hallway, talking with Quintus, but this time, Mavis saw him looking around suspiciously a little more. She sighed. Mavis had escaped that one purely through her superhuman reaction time. Mavis's attention was brought back to Fubuki, who was right underneath the meeting room, installing the explosives. She flew over, right to the side of the walls, and phased through, causing Fubuki to jump.

"Hey," said Mavis, "I'm back, Fubuki."

Before Fubuki could do anything, Mavis had vanished, flinging Fubuki against the wall so hard that it dented. The entire building shuddered. Mavis grabbed the explosive, which was taped to the wall, and was about to throw it against the wall, when Fubuki retaliated, spitting black flame straight at Mavis, forcing her to drop the bomb to avoid it being detonated.

Above them, Mavis heard yelling, as soldiers must've been trying to figure out what was going on. It was then when Mavis heard Hess's voice, through a mic in Fubuki's ear. "Detonate the explosives!" he yelled, "detonate the explosives, Fubuki! We can't afford to waste any more time here. I have him trapped in the meeting room."

Before Fubuki could respond, Mavis sent a decent roundhouse kick, that caused her to fly back and hit the wall. Fubuki got back up, and released a torrent of black fire everywhere, causing the ceiling to get melted clean open. The ceiling, that was the floor of the meeting room. The place where Hess was supposed to be.

Mavis looked up, right in time to see the Gordian Empire's incompetent leader get vaporized by the flame.


	130. Deathly Burden

There was nothing Mavis could do about it. Almost instantly, Hess's entire body was a pile of ash. Mavis yelled, sending Fubuki flying backwards against the wall, so hard that the wall broke open, and explosive decompression took place. Mavis and Fubuki were both sucked out into space instantly, both of them surviving as well. Through the glass windows, Mavis saw Quintus phase through the walls, and go into space as well. She cursed. Where was Johnny? She hated fighting two people at once.

Her question was answered immediately, as a bolt of electricity flew out of nowhere, and struck Fubuki, knocking her back a little. Mavis turned around, right in time to see Johnny float over, right next to her. He was somehow breathing in space. Mavis didn't bother to figure out how, because Quintus decided to initiate the attack at that moment. He charged straight at Mavis, bringing his fist down on her face, right before he was blasted backwards telekinetically by Mavis.

Fubuki and Johnny got locked back into combat, both of them trying to kill the other. Johnny had turned into his full electrical form, and Fubuki was shooting out black flame and throwing fireballs like some sort of pyromancer. Mavis's attention was forced back to Quintus, when he charged over to Mavis, sending a wave of antimatter-matter particles flying at Mavis. There was a huge explosion, that rocked the entire space station. Fubuki and Johnny were both blasted back, but Mavis was perfectly fine. Behind her, the space station was in ruins. The antimatter explosion that Quintus had caused was more than enough to demolish the entire thing.

For the first time, Mavis saw a bit of doubt appear on Quintus's face. With giddy realization, Mavis saw that the antimatter explosion that was caused was from Quintus actually exerting a decent amount of effort. He was actually trying to kill her now. But Mavis had survived, without taking a single scratch. Quintus glared at her.

"You're as annoying as ever, Mavis," he commented, "how you've achieved such endurance, I don't know. It doesn't matter though. I still have the superior technology here." Before Mavis could do anything, Quintus had grabbed the explosive that Fubuki was trying to plant under the meeting room telekinetically, and brought it over to himself. Even from here, Mavis felt the danger that surrounded it. Even on her standards, it made a relatively large boom. She grabbed Johnny telekinetically, forcing him near her.

"Only I can conjure up a telekinetic shield strong enough to block off the blast from this explosive," said Quintus, "it took me years and years of shield practice in order for me to master it. But no matter, I have what I need now. Goodbye, Mavis Dracula.". With that, Quintus pushed the button that would detonate the explosive, and threw it out towards Mavis. On the front of it, Mavis saw a few digital numbers appear: 0:10

It was a countdown. Mavis turned to Johnny, "Hang on," she said seriously, "this might actually be a little close…" Johnny didn't reply, so Mavis turned around, creating the strongest energy shield she's ever attempted to create, forming a barrier so thick, that even Mavis felt tired after forming it.

Right as the explosive was at 0:05, however, Mavis noticed something. Quintus had formed a shield, but Fubuki was not in it. Fubuki was still out of the shield. With horrifying realization, Fubuki saw what was happening, and was only capable of forming the biggest shield she could conjure up. Even from this distance, Mavis knew that it wouldn't be enough to block off the explosion-

The explosive detonated.

"Fubuki!" Mavis's voice was drowned out instantly, as the area around her was filled with a bright burst of purple and blue light. Mavis felt the shield holding. They were safe, for now, but Mavis's main concern was Fubuki. She couldn't see anything beyond the whirlwind of colors and light that was in front of her, but her extrasensory perception quickly told her that this explosive was a contained explosion. The entire explosion took place in a 1 mile diameter sphere, and caused every single _thing_ within that sphere to crack apart. Mavis's heart pounded. She had her doubts about Fubuki being able to survive something of that scale. Next to Mavis, Johnny stood up, staring around at the colors that were swirling around them.

The explosion finally died out, and Mavis was immediately greeted with a sight of surprising emptiness. Usually, after an explosion, there were fires, or debris. In this explosion, there was nothing. Everything within the explosion radius had simply vanished, including half of the space station, which was now suffering from extreme explosive decompression. There was one thing, however, which seemed to have partially survived.

"Fubuki…" ignoring Quintus, Mavis flew over to the broken form of Fubuki, who was floating in space. As Mavis neared her, she saw that Fubuki was barely even alive anymore. Her life force was so low, that it was beyond saving at this point. Mavis softly landed next to Fubuki, forming a shield around her, and kneeling next to her. Fubuki's eyes slowly opened. They were green.

"Mavis…." Fubuki's eyes flickered a little, "is that...you?" Mavis nodded, clutching Fubuki's arm, "It's me." she said softly, "Fubuki...you're-"

"I'm dying." Fubuki's blunt words hit Mavis like a truck, but she still swallowed them. Mavis nodded, "Yeah," she said, "you're dying.". There was no point in holding it back from Fubuki at this point. Fubuki knew it as well as Mavis did. "I...I hope I didn't disappoint you as much as I think I did," murmured Fubuki, "I'm sorry, Mavis….you were right….Kolt wouldn't have wanted this…."

Mavis sighed. "You never disappointed me," she said to Fubuki, "every time I saw you, at least I knew that I was the one who gave you your strength. I just didn't teach you how to use it. It was my failure.". Fubuki didn't say anything for a second, before she finally coughed, "I...I can see…." she murmured, "Mavis...I was decieved. Promise me...that you'll avenge me."

Mavis nodded, "I will." she said. Fubuki moved her head in a motion that slightly resembled nodding. A few seconds later, Mavis felt an emptiness in her. It was the same feeling she got whenever an important person in her life died. Fubuki was dead, and there was no way to bring her back. Fubuki was dead, because of one person.

"How touching," sneered Quintus, "I never knew why you even bothered to train her, Mavis. Fubuki was nothing but a pawn for my plans. You will be no different.". Mavis slowly turned to Quintus. She didn't feel sadness, but a blunt, harsh anger that coursed through her. She had felt this feeling once before. It resembled what she felt like when Tiberius had killed Johnny.

Mavis appeared right behind Quintus, grabbing his entire body telekinetically, and slamming it so hard against the space station, that it punched a hole directly through one of the walls. Mavis didn't stop there. As Quintus was flying backwards, she flew right up to him, grabbing his face, and kicking it, sending Quintus flying straight through the entire space station. Less than a picosecond later, Mavis had Quintus in a dense headlock.

Quintus, for the first time, looked scared. "Look," he said slyly, "We...we can make a deal, right? I know a place where you can-"

Mavis snapped his neck.

Johnny silently floated over to Mavis, who was standing there, in the middle of space, with the limp form of Quintus floating a few meters away. He put a hand on her shoulder, and formed an air bubble around them, allowed Johnny to speak in space. "Mavis…" Johnny looked as if he was scared to talk to her, "we should go back to the market. There's no point in really staying here."

Mavis nodded silently. She grabbed Johnny's arm, and without really thinking about it, jumped to warp, vanishing from the battle scene completely. They left a destroyed space station, the wreckage of over a thousand ships, and the dead body of the only person Mavis considered as her sister.

* * *

Josiah was scrambling around in his laboratory. All around him, were screens, some of them showing images from recent news. He saw Mavis and Johnny's attack on the space station of Ultimatus, and the declaration of independence issued from the Marketers at a remote star system in the outer regions. But right now, he was working on trying to track something much more important than all of that.

Recently, Josiah's equipment and telescopes had been picking up something very strange. When Mavis and Johnny first arrived in the galaxy, Josiah regarded their draconian core as the most advanced and energy-filled object that he had ever seen. What he was looking at right now broke that record by a lot. If his calculations were correct, the object he was tracking in space right now broke the laws of physics itself.

Josiah went over to his computer, which was situated on the other side of the room, and logged in, typing in his username and password so fast that he had to redo it about three times. After he finally got logged onto his telescope, Josiah pressed a few more buttons, switching his view to telescope #78a. Telescope 78a was one of the outer telescopes. It's job was to track celestial objects that were over a megaparsec away from the galaxy, and Josiah had never really used them until now.

Sure enough, on his screen, the same as he saw a few minutes ago, was a tiny white blob. Josiah zoomed in onto it, taking a reading of everything that had to do with it. It was about six feet tall, and had an energy output that apparently exceeded the energy output of the entire observable universe. It had so much energy, that if it were to all be released, Josiah calculated that it would be able to destroy this universe over twenty google times.

That was scary.

Josiah quickly grabbed his notebook, taking notes of what he saw on the screen. He would have to warn someone about this, but he didn't know who. This was an incredibly important piece of information, mainly because Josiah had found out that the object was heading directly for their galaxy. Josiah quickly grabbed his pen and his TI-nSpireX-5000, punching in a few numbers, and quickly found out that the object was heading straight for the outer regions in a linear direction.

Wait a second. That wasn't right for multiple reasons. The first reason why that was impossible was because celestial objects never traveled in a straight line. They were affected by gravity, dark matter, and other forms of attraction to other celestial objects. And the second reason why that wasn't right was because...it happened to also be heading straight for the black market planet that Mavis was just in.

A bead of sweat ran down Josiah's chin, as he punched in the numbers again to make sure that he was right. He never failed his calculations. His math and science skills were flawless. The object was heading in a linear path towards the place that Mavis Dracula was just at. That could not be a coincidence. The object must've been a vehicle, ran by some sort of sentient beings. Perhaps of the same race as Mavis?

That was the only explanation. Josiah grabbed the page he was writing on, tearing it out and stuffing it into his bag. He then printed out all the files of the images of the celestial object, including its heat and energy readings. He scrambled over to his jet, which was parked right outside, in his underground hangar, and climbed in, throwing his bags into the back, and starting up the engines. He had to go to the planet, find Mavis, and tell her what he had found.

* * *

 _Concentrate_.

Dracula hated concentrating. True, he wanted to talk to his daughter. He loved his daughter. But at the same time, he found it unreasonable how much effort had to be put into the communications. He closed his eyes yet again, and let out a huff of indignation as he failed yet again. This was really stupid.

Dracula _had_ to warn Mavis though. The Guardian wasn't very far away from her. It was drawing near. In a few days, it may be arriving. Dracula had to tell Mavis, had to warn her. Everyone in the realm of the dead was going to be tuning in to their TVs to see the Guardian fight. Even in the realm of the dead, it was a pretty big thing.

A big thing, sure, but to Dracula, it was also personal. It was his daughter who was at stake here. He had to make sure that she was ready for the fight. He knew that Mavis could fight reality, but he wasn't so sure about the guardian. The Guardian was a whole new tier of strength.

Dracula sighed, closing his eyes again. He would try and try again, until he succeeded in finding Mavis.

* * *

 **[Mavis Dracula] Lvl: 5,920**

 **[Fubuki] Final Lvl: 70**

 **[Johnny] Lvl: 75**

 **[Josiah] Lvl: 2**

 **[Quintus] Final Lvl: 145**

 **[The Entity] Lvl: 2,000**

* * *

 **Author's Note: Back from Mexico :D**


	131. Great Revelation

Mavis hated long silences. Because that's exactly what followed her coming out of hyperspace, right in front of the market planet. Of course, even if Johnny wanted to talk, he wouldn't be able to, mainly because of the lack of molecules to send the sonic vibrations through, and partly because he probably didn't want to talk. Both of them had suffered a pretty big loss only a few minutes ago.

As the two of them entered into the atmosphere, Mavis quickly found the _Suncrusher_ , floating above the market city. She flew down, going fast so that the marketers would not notice her immediately, and landed in front of the front gates of the market city. Mavis could already see some major differences in the city. The gates had been polished up, the marketers replacing its flimsy wood doors with solid steel doors. A red flag, with a black diamond in the center, flapped in the air in the center of the city. Mavis heard talking and commotion coming from within the city as well. It seemed as if the place has improved.

Johnny took the initiative, opening the steel doors with a wave of his hands. As he and Mavis walked into the streets, there were immediately cries of, "Look! It's Mavis and Johnny! They've already come back!". Dozens of marketers ran up to Mavis, welcoming her back. Joul also came up to Mavis and asked her how the mission went. It was then when Mavis decided to bring the bittersweet news.

"The Gordian Empire is no more." she said, "Hess is dead."

Immediately, there was cheering and cries of joy. Mavis saw a group of pirates run in, giving everyone free drinks and bottles of wine. The streets were soon filled with the sound of firecrackers, and bursts of light, as the fireworks shop in the corner of the city let loose with its payload. Mavis smiled a little, but quickly remembered Fubuki's death. She and Johnny made their way through the streets, until they were back in Joul's brewery. There, Mavis began to make plans.

"The Gordian empire may be crumbling right now," she said, "but they will find a leader, soon. We should take advantage of this time to capture what we can. My idea is simple. We can start by taking over this planet.". There were whispers here and there through the brewery when Mavis said this. "This planet is known for its black markets," said Mavis, "I say that we conquer the other cities. Kill anyone who doesn't join us immediately, and take their supplies. After that, we'll begin more organized attacks on outposts and space stations."

"Sounds like a profitable idea," agreed one of the pirates, "the nearest black market to here is Toshila. We can easily take over that area. From what I've heard, they also have a decent amount of armaments in their stores...imagine our firepower after we take over their area...and the attack should be easy as well, if you're going to lead us."

"Aye," said the pirate next to him, "Mavis, you must lead us! We need you for this attack!"

Mavis held up her hand, and there was immediate silence. "I will lead the attack," she said solidly, "and so will Johnny. We will win this battle, believe me." right as she said this, there were cheers and whoops from the crowd. "We will begin the attack tomorrow morning." To be honest, Mavis wasn't attacking the city for loot or arms. She was only attacking to consolidate her power through the planet.

Mavis stepped off the podium, walking with Johnny out of the brewery. Behind her, talking broke out about the attack that would take place tomorrow. Mavis grinned slightly. Only a day into her rule, and they were already attacking other cities and markets. Her new empire was going to grow real fast. There was no doubt about that much.

Or at least, until Mavis sensed something come out of warp right above her. Mavis looked up, right as she saw a tiny speck warp into the atmosphere. It was a fighter, and Mavis recognized it immediately as a Gordian fighter, and it was flying straight for the city. Mavis frowned. What was a single, lone Gordian fighter doing all the way out here?

Several of the marketers also noticed what Mavis saw, and there were immediately yells of alarm, as several of the marketers grabbed their guns, and ran over the walls, lining up. They pointed their guns at the area where the fighter landed, and Mavis gave the order for them to hold their fire. It wasn't right. Why would a single Gordian fighter go all the way out here?

As Mavis watched from the ramparts, she saw the fighter slowly land, and cut its engines on top of a sand dune a few hundred feet away from the walls. Whoever was flying the fighter definitely wasn't a soldier, because a soldier wouldn't have made such a clumsy landing. The doors slid open, and….Josiah walked out.

Mavis held up her hand, "Hold your fire," she said quickly, "he's a friendly.". Immediately, the marketers put down their weapons, but the suspicion on their faces were still evident. Josiah looked frantic. He ran up to the walls with his hands up. In his arms was a notebook. His voice was tense and urgent, as he yelled, "I need to see Mavis!".

The marketers turned to Mavis, looking at her expectantly. Mavis sighed, levitating herself off the ground and flying over to Josiah, "What do you need me for?" she asked, "aren't we supposed to be enemies? Aren't you supposed to be running away from the Gordian empire right now? What're you doing here?"

Josiah glanced at the line of marketers right behind Mavis, some of them eyeing him aggressively. He gulped. "Um...maybe we should talk about it inside," he said, "it's quite a bit to explain actually, but I'm relatively certain that it has to do with you guys.". Mavis nodded slowly. She didn't like Josiah, but she regarded him as a sort of ally. "Johnny, you too." said Josiah, "this also concerns you." Johnny raised his eyebrows as he watched the conversation, "What do you mean," he growled, "what concerns us?"

"Let's first find a place to talk," interjected Mavis. She turned to the line of marketers, "Come on guys," she said, "move along. We're just gonna have a little chat outside Joul's brewery. Come on, Josiah…" the three of them walked through the front gates, Mavis opening it telekinetically, and briskly leading the way through the streets. Around her, the marketers were dispersing, but still shooting suspicious glances at Josiah.

The three of them all sat down at a table outside Joul's brewery, where Josiah finally got to the part which he wanted to tell Mavis and Johnny about. He pulled out a notebook, opening it, and showing Mavis and Johnny the images inside. "So," he began, "while I was in hiding, I hacked into a few of the Gordian telescopes, you know, for fun, and I began to watch space.". Mavis nodded, "Okay…" she murmured.

"So I was looking at one of our longer range telescopes the other day, and I found _this_." Josiah pulled out a sheet of printed paper. On it, was what looked like a solid black piece of paper, except there was an exceptionally bright white dot in the center of it. "What's that?" asked Mavis instinctively, pointing to the dot.

"This paper shows the deviation from the average energy output of the universe," said Josiah, "the more black it is, the more similar it is to the average spatial energy output. The more white it is, the more it deviates from the average. That point," Josiah pointed to the white dot, "is a _serious_ deviation from ideal energy output. It's far from natural."

Mavis frowned, "Okay…" she murmured softly, "so how does this have to do with me? I see no connection between some particularly active star and me.." Josiah sighed, "the problem is," he flipped through his notebook, until he reached one particular page that was covered with calculations, "I've calculated that this object is heading in a linear direction, meaning its going in a straight line. It's heading directly for this planet."

Mavis paused, "What?" she asked, "so...it's coming for...me?"

"Not us," said Johnny, "this planet. But this does sound fishy. Are you sure you did your calculations correct?" Josiah nodded, but Mavis wasn't worried about Josiah's calculative capabilities. She knew that Josiah was an incredibly intelligient person. She just didn't know how to interpret the information that he just gave her.

"So how _much_ does it actually deviate?" asked Mavis, "like...give me something to reference it to.". Josiah sighed, flipping through the pages again, until he came to another page on his notebook, this one also covered with calculations and math equations. "According to my calculations," he said nervously, reading his own writing, "if this object was to release all of its energy in one moment, it would be enough to destroy this universe twenty google times over."

Johnny sat straight up, accidently lighting his own hair on fire with electricity, " _What_?" he asked, "you do know how much google is, right? It's like...a lot of zeroes.". Josiah responded swiftly, "To be exact," he said smartly, "one hundred zeroes. Point is, there is an object of extreme energy deviation heading for this planet, with no curvature to its path. This is practically impossible for a natural object, so I made the assumption that it had to do with you guys for some reason."

Mavis glanced at Johnny, "I have no idea what it is," she said lamely, "but if its really coming for this specific planet...then...that means that its probably coming for either me or Johnny.". Josiah nodded, but didn't say anything to this. Johnny suddenly turned to Mavis, "didn't you say that there was something that was hunting you?" he asked, "like, a Guardian, or something…"

Mavis sat up straight. "The guardian." she said, "it makes so much sense…"

"What?" Josiah looked frantic with excitement and fear, "what's the guardian?". Mavis quickly began to explain, "it's this thing…" she 'murmured, "I saw it in a dream. It's supposed to be some sort of sentient being that sets the benchmark for how powerful someone can become in the universe. If you reach a certain point in power, it'll come after you, and kill you. I think that the object you're tracking is the Guardian."

Josiah looked exasperated, "But..in a dream?" he spluttered, "Mavis, you can't just go and make assumptions based off of _dreams_. Dreams are a product of your imagination, for cripes sake! You truly believe that something in your dreams can become a reality? It's incredulous!" Mavis wasn't surprised at Josiah's response. She had figured that he wanted a solid, fact-based answer.

"Listen," said Mavis, "do you really think that facts and logic can explain for a celestial body of that magnitude? I'll give you the answer-it can't. I've had dreams before, and when those dreams predicted that things would happen, those things happened. I'm certain that this object you're talking about is the Guardian. We must begin preparing for it."

Josiah looked as if he was about to blow steam out of his ears, "But...it's not _science_!" he said, "it isn't supported by _facts_!". Johnny and Mavis both waved their hands, "Mavis is right," said Johnny, "her dreams usually do end up correct. Experience had taught me that much. Anyways, how're we supposed to prepare for something that's more powerful than all of us?"

"I...I think...my dad gave me this." Mavis pulled out the Rubik's cube, which she had been keeping in her pocket for the past few days. Surprisingly, it was completely unscratched, despite the many battles and fights she had waged in the past hours. She dropped the Rubik's cube onto the table nonchalantly. "It's supposed to hold some sort of significance towards defeating the Guardian." she said.

"Wait a second…" Johnny suddenly grabbed the Rubik's cube, "this thing has more than six colors," he said, "it has….twelve.". "What?" Mavis grabbed the Rubik's cube, and looked at it again. When she last glanced at it, she could swear that she only saw six colors. But sure enough, there were twelve now. Six extra colors had been added in at the center of each face.

"So you will never be able to properly solve it…" murmured Josiah, "that's strange."

"Well, its besides the point right now." said Mavis bluntly, grabbing the Rubik's cube and dropping it back into her pocket, "what we need to do right now is alert the marketers of what's going to happen. Johnny, cancel the attack tomorrow. We're going to hold a meeting over what to do about the Guardian."

Johnny nodded, getting up from his seat, "Alright." he said, "I'll tell the marketers about what's going on." with that, he walked out of sight, winding through the streets, going towards Joul's brewery. Soon enough Mavis heard the disappointed moans and complaints from the marketers, as they heard Johnny announce that they wouldn't be raiding anything tomorrow.

Mavis sighed, also getting up, "Come with me," she said to Josiah, "we're gonna go deliver the news to the marketers. They deserve to know what's going on as much as we do."


	132. The Guardian

Mavis hated it when she had to deal with bad surprises. Usually, if something bad happened, and MAvis knew that it would happen beforehand, she would be like, _Yeah, well, at least I had time to prepare_. Now, she was forced to cancel off a really hyped attack that all the marketers were looking forward to, _and_ found out that the Guardian was actually surprisingly close. According to what Josiah told her, the Guardian was only a couple of megaparsecs away, and it was moving real fast.

By the next day, Josiah had full "citizenship" within the marketer empire, and had his own building, topped with a telescope and a sensors array. Luckily for Josiah, he brought all of his astronomical equipment and sensors with him. He soon had a decent image of the object on a computer that he had installed in his room. Mavis ordered him to keep track of it, which Josiah seemed more than interested to do.

Mavis's next move was to renovate the marketer's equipment. Using telekinesis, she created a personal, highly-advanced fighter for every marketer in the city. Every fighter had its personal cloaking device, warp drive, and had a rapid-fire rail gun that was installed into its front, along with antimatter missiles within its compartments. This was far more advanced than any other fighter in the marketer arsenal, so when Mavis gave the marketers the fighters, she was greeted by the usual cheers.

Mavis then continued on, renovating the walls by rearranging their molecular and subatomic structure, replacing the 15-foot tall wooden wall with a 30-foot tall solid graphene wall, topped with high-explosive machine guns and areas for snipers to shoot from. She finished it all of by creating a permanent telekinetic ceiling over the entire city. This was all witnessed by the marketers, who were now growing more and more convinced that Mavis could do literally anything.

But in reality, Mavis was doing this all out of precaution. She knew that the Gordian Empire was in disarray. If they really were as much as she thought they were, then there might be people from the Gordian Empire who would want to retreat to their market city. Mavis didn't want to get swamped by refugees. So she was ready.

By now, the market city had grown considerably better. Mavis had cured every disease and sickness in the city, so nobody was sick or wounded anymore. Mavis set up the School of Marketers the day after arriving back in the city. The school would be a place where they would teach children how to fight, work with guns, and do work, while they would also learn calculus, physics, and chemistry from Josiah. Mavis usually spent her free time either helping the citizens, or designing new defenses to the city. By the end of the second day, there were ground-to-space cannons, and anti-aircraft guns installed on the wall as well, which had been pushed back twenty meters to accommodate for the airfield that Mavis had also constructed.

Everything was going well. But even so, Mavis made sure not to let her guard down. She was certain that the thing that Josiah was tracking was the guardian, and she was certain that it was coming for her. That was the only way to explain for its strange behavior, and the fact that it was heading directly for the planet that Mavis and Johnny happened to be on.

As the sun set on the second day, Mavis found herself sitting on her bed. She had spent the entire time after dinner working on installing some more advanced sensors for Josiah. She didn't really want to do anything anymore. As Mavis lay down on the soft mattress, she heard the door open and close, and saw Johnny walk in.

"Hey," said Johnny, when he saw Mavis. He sat down next to Mavis and kissed her quickly on the cheek, "you doing alright?" he asked, "I saw you building those huge guns that are mounted on the walls...the marketers seem to like them.". Mavis smiled a little, "Yeah," she said, a slight happy tone to her voice, "that's good. I was just thinking about Earth…"

Johnny's smile turned a little more apologetic. "You shouldn't worry about Earth right now," he said, "this is how things are now, Mavis. There's no changing it." Mavis knew that Johnny was correct when he said this, but she found herself thinking of Earth more and more every day now. She remembered the cool winter wind of Romania. The beautiful beaches of Santa Cruz. The gas station where she got a rainbow slushie. Things that seemed to distant, but so close as well.

So distant….but so close as well…

Mavis opened her eyes. She was in the Hotel. In her dad's Hotel. Hotel Transylvania. All around her, monsters walked around, talking and chatting together. Mavis saw old friends. Griffin. Murray. Frankenstein. Everyone. Everyone, who she loved and knew. She even saw herself, laughing amongst the group. Someone was missing though...someone was not here.

With a chill, Mavis realized that it was Johnny. Johnny was not here. She also felt her hands growing warm, as she realized that this was probably another mental test. Another test, to see if she was really as inflexible as she seemed. A voice said in her head, "Choose…", and Mavis knew it. This was definitely a mental test.

Mavis snapped her fingers, and the entire image of the hotel shattered, fragmenting into a thousand pieces, replaced by an image of open space. There was no sun nearby, no planets, not even an asteroid, which was really weird. Mavis's extrasensory perception kicked in, and she realized that she was in the void. The area of space that separated galaxies.

Mavis looked around. Usually, when she spontaneously had a vision like this, it probably had some sort of significance. For about half a minute, Mavis sat there, wondering what it might be, before she saw the first of them appear. Ships. Hundreds of them. Thousands of them. They looked like a mosquito swarm. They were unorganized, and didn't fly in a formation, but the sheer number of them made them a formidable force.

But what worried Mavis was the thing in the center of the fleet. All the ships seemed to be circling a person, who was flying in the center of the entire fleet. Similar to Mavis, this person wasn't in a vehicle and was still able to fly, but unlike Mavis, he flew in an upright position. He was standing, but simply _moved_ forward, as if carried by some invisible force. That wasn't even the weirdest part. The weirdest part was his face.

Mavis couldn't even tell what it really _was_. The face looked like a shiny, highly-reflective glass sphere, with colors and shadows twisting and forming around inside of it. If a normal person even _looked_ at this thing, then they would be instantly driven insane, if not vaporized. As Mavis watched this person, she quickly felt the power that emanated from it. It was beyond anything that she's ever felt before.

Mavis's hands turned white. This….person...was the Guardian.

It was then when Mavis noticed something. The Guardian was looking straight at her. Mavis instinctively looked behind her, but nothing was there. She turned back. The guardian was still staring at her. The entire fleet had stopped moving, as the Guardian continued to stare. Mavis was kind of creeped out. How was the Guardian able to find her in a dream? It should be impossible.

 _I will be seeing you._

The voice didn't come from the Guardian, but from inside Mavis's head. Mavis stared. What was going on? The guardian stared a Mavis for a few more seconds, before turning back, and resuming his flight towards Mavis's planet. His entire fleet followed. As Mavis watched the back of the guardian, she saw the guardian raise his fingers, and snap.

Mavis sat up straight, breathing hard. She was sitting on the bed. Next to her, Johnny was staring at Mavis as if she had just dropped down from the sky, which Mavis suspected that she did, judging by the fact that the guardian _saw_ her in what she thought was a dream, or a vision. "Mavis, you alright?" asked Johnny, "you sort of seized up...and started...uh, shaking."

Mavis stared down at herself. Her hair had started smoking. Her eyes had turned a dangerous shade of blue. "I just saw something," she said, "something very, very bad.". Johnny raised an eyebrow, "another vision?" he asked, "if it is another vision, you better tell me about it. It could be important, you know."

"Yeah, it's important alright." muttered Mavis, sitting up on the bed, "Johnny...the guardian...I saw him. He's heading towards the galaxy _right now_ , with a giant fleet of ships. I don't know how he has the ships, and I don't know why he's using ships, but there's a fleet of warships that are following him around. And...and he _saw_ me."

Johnny stared at Mavis, "Whaddaya mean, he saw you?" asked Johnny, "like...he saw you in the dream?". Mavis nodded profusely, "Yes!" she said, "and that's supposed to be impossible! How does one see someone else who's spying on them through a dream? It makes no sense...but it's the Guardian, he's bound to be much more powerful than what I'm used to."

"That's…" Johnny struggled a little, "Not good," he finished. "We have to warn the marketers in that case. If the Guardian is truly coming to this planet, with a fleet of ships, then we're going to have to prepare for battle. Should I go and alert the marketers?". Mavis paused for a second. She wasn't even sure if the marketers would believe her on this one. But at the same time, she knew that the marketers deserved the truth.

Mavis nodded, "Go." she said, "tell them of what's happening. Alert Josiah as well, tell him to track that object like its the last thing he's ever going to do. And it might _actually_ be the last thing he ever does." Johnny nodded slowly, and retreated out the door.

Mavis turned back to the bed, laying down silently. She wasn't tired. She was never going to be tired. She didn't know what the word "tired" even meant anymore. Sleeping was a distraction at this point. Mavis sat up straight again. Why was she sleeping? There was a horde of warships, heading straight for her planet at that moment, and she was going to sleep?

Downstairs, Mavis heard talking and clamoring. Johnny must've delivered the news by now. Mavis sighed, also getting up, and dragged herself out the door, walking down the stairs, and transformed herself into black mist, flying through the streets, until she was in Joul's brewery. There, Johnny had clearly just finished giving his speech. He was standing towards the sides, and raised his eyebrows when he saw Mavis enter the brewery. Everyone else was talking in hushed voices.

"I told them about what you saw," said Johnny, "they all believe it to be true, which is good.". Mavis nodded. That was good. At least she wouldn't have to deal with people who thought that she was lying now. Mavis walked up to the podium, causing a hush to fall over the entire room immediately. Mavis looked around. The brewery was mostly full. Some people were just walking in. Others were about to leave, but decided to stay when they saw Mavis walk in.

Mavis, using telekinesis to magnify her voice throughout the entire city, began to speak. "My name is Mavis Dracula," she said slowly, "I'm here to announce to those who weren't there when Johnny said this...that we are going to be under attack very soon." the entire brewery was silent, as they listened to Mavis, "I want you guys to remember what we have built," continued Mavis, "in the course of two days, we've built an airfield, renovated our air force, built a better city, and drove out the Gordian Empire. Don't let us lose the city after all we've done."

There were murmurs that went across the room. Some of the marketers nodded in agreement. "But the force that will be attacking us shortly….they are beyond the scope of power of anything that you can imagine," said Mavis, "do not treat them as living beings. They are animals, who will slaughter you and your loved ones, if you don't slaughter them first." this sentence brought some nervous muttering that swept the room, "because of this danger," continued Mavis, "I will be ordering all market activity to be halted tomorrow for the construction of defenses." surprisingly, there was no complaints at this. Most of the marketers seemed pretty scared, actually.

"Everyone in this city will be required to work for at least ten hours tomorrow, for various tasked," said Mavis, "whether it be digging trenches, or preparing weapons, or fuelling fighters. I will be amongst you as well. Children are excluded from this, obviously, but women will be required to take part in the work as well."

Mavis looked around at the now-crowded brewery. Most of their faces showed fear. When someone like Mavis described something as "beyond the scope of power of anything you can imagine", it usually made people scared. And this was no exception. Mavis sighed. "I know that a lot of you guys weren't expecting battle," she said, "but in this case, we have no choice. We have to fight, in the name of defending our city, and our loved ones."

There was a slight pause, in which Mavis glanced at the rest of the room, before saying, "Thank you.".

* * *

 **Author's Note: I'm gonna be starting a wikia page for this story for references to power and characters, for those of you who didn't read the entire story.**

 ** _wiki/Mavis_and_Johnny_vs._Rest_of_the_World_**


	133. Last of the Empire

There have only been so many moments in Mavis's life when she saw a group of people work together for a cause. This was one of those moments. It was six o'clock in the morning, and Mavis was giving out instructions on which group of people would be doing what. She had already assigned groups to dig trenches. Another group had been assigned to lay down mines around the city. She had just finished assigning yet another group to laying down plasma barbed wire.

After Mavis finished assigning all her groups, she and Johnny went around the city, making their own defenses. Mavis got a chance to really practice her subatomic manipulation with this. She installed railguns into the wall, and added a bunch of anti aircraft guns to the walls, so that the city would be protecting from aerial attack. She also constructed multiple anti-aircraft guns on the top of every roof and building, in case her telekinetic barrier didn't hold.

A few hours into work, Josiah had scrambled up to Mavis, telling her that the objects that he was tracking in space had moved into a much higher tier of acceleration, and that it had just entered into the edge of the unknown regions in the galaxy. Mavis had gone personally to the television to see what was going on, and if anyone was tracking it, and sure enough, on one of the privately-owned news channels, it had breaking news of a Cyrdian Cube getting completely annihilated in the edge of unknown space by an "unknown force". Mavis already knew what that unknown force was.

MAvis turned back to Josiah, "Track the objects," she said, "alert me if it does anything strange, and when it gets within a hundred light years of this location. Got it?" Josiah nodded, looking both excited and terrified. Mavis respected Josiah for that. He was smart, but he didn't try to act superior because of it. He still let his human traits show through, like excitement, or fear.

It was then when Mavis heard one of men yell, "Look! Up there!". Mavis looked up, right in time to see a transport fly down, towards the city. Immediately, there were yells, and scrambling, as the marketers grabbed their weapons, and ran behind the nearest cover, pointing their weapons at the transport. Mavis gave the order to hold their fire. She knew that these guys weren't from the guardian.

The doors to the transports opened up, and a group of uniformed officers came out. There were muttering amongst the group, as Mavis realized that these officers were from the Gordian Empire. Behind them, a bounty hunter, three pirates, and a smuggler also came out of the back of the transport. They all looked tired, as if they had been travelling for days, and held up their hands in surrender when they saw the marketers' weapons.

"Please," one of the officers begged, "we only came here because we want a life of order...the Gordian empire is in absolute chaos right now. We just want a place to live and a place to get settled…" Mavis's eyes glowed. Her extrasensory perception told her that the officer was sincere. She began to scan the entire group. All of them showed signs of legitimate fatigue and weakness. They were unarmed. They were harmless.

"It's fine." said Mavis, "let them in, boys." the marketers lowered their weapons, watching the group as they entered into the city. Mavis quickly lead them around, showing them to their rooms. She allowed them to sleep in one of the new inns that she created, but only after informing them of the incoming invasion. None of the people in the group really seemed fazed about this. The pirates snorted, the bounty hunter didn't say anything, and the officers just looked a little anxious.

As Mavis went back to working, she had to deal with multiple more scenarios similar to this. As lunch approached, Mavis had already allowed five groups of refugees to pass through into the city, but rejected one group, after she discovered a highly volatile thermonuclear explosive in his backpack. Mavis took the thermonuclear missile, and threw the person back into the sand. She then gave the order for him to get shot, which the marketers were more than happy to do.

As lunch time drew near, Mavis and Johnny sat down together, eating outside Joul's brewery. Mavis had used subatomic manipulation to create roast duck for every person in the entire city, which was a delicacy that literally none of them had ever tried before. Mavis did this for two reasons: She was nice, and she needed to reinforce her image of a leader who can do anything. As the seconds drew by, Josiah also slid in with Mavis and Johnny. He was clutching a duck in his hands as well.

"How's the guardian going?" asked Mavis, "is it getting closer?". Josiah nodded fervently, "Yes," he said, "it is. In fact…" Josiah took out a piece of printed paper and handed it to Mavis. Mavis took a look at it, and saw that it was a screenshot of the computer screen that Josiah had in his room, "it's accelerating faster and faster right now," said Josiah, "It should reach the outer regions by tomorrow, and should reach our planet specifically by the day after that."

Mavis nodded, handing the piece of paper back to Josiah. "We'll have to be ready for it." she said, "anything else important that concerns us?" Josiah paused, then took out another sheet of paper, "This...uh...is kinda off topic, but while fiddling with the telescopes, I found _this_." Mavis picked up the sheet of paper that Josiah was offering her, and glanced at it. It showed a group of Gordian Warships, that were attacking a planet.

"What's this?" asked Mavis, looking up at Josiah. "I managed to hack a spy drone," explained Josiah, "look here….the Gordian Empire is reforming, and quickly. The navy is already reclaiming some of their lost land. I don't know who's leading them, but whoever it is, they seem to be taking a much more militaristic stance on things."

Mavis paused. "Well…" she thought about it for a moment, "that can be good, I guess." she said, "at least now we have another armed faction that can actually fight the Guardian, if he comes along.". Mavis, deep down, knew this to be false. If the Guardian _did_ arrive at her planet, then the most the marketers would be able to do is destroy a few ships. Mavis would have to engage the guardian on her own.

That wasn't something that Mavis wanted to dwell on. She stood up, magnifying her own voice, and speaking out, "Time to get back to work, guys." she said. There was the sound of chairs scraping against the floor, as the marketers got up and began to head back to the front to prepare the defenses. Mavis noticed that most of them didn't even look tired. In fact, most of them looked like they wanted to work. Fear was written all over their faces.

* * *

General S. James watched from the bridge of his ship, the _Howler_ , the fleet that he had assembled. It had been two days since Hess had died, and the entire empire was in complete disarray. The planet of Ultimatus had been sacked, the police force abandoning it, and pirates coming to loot what they could. The Cyrdian Cubes also used this to their advantage, warping into orbit around Ultimatus, and taking everyone they saw as slave labor.

General James was one of the few people who saw a hope for order within the empire. He had just finished rallying up his troops, and had gathered a fleet of over 7,000 warships, all of which were ready to fight. General James wasn't as worried about the Gordian Empire, however, as he was about the newfound stories of a fleet of ships attacking the unknown regions.

If the stories he heard were true, these ships were capable of destroying anything, literally. The unknown regions had already fallen, and rumor had it that the enemy ships were in mid-warp, going deeper into the unknown regions. James was there to stop them, if he found them. Behind him, his entire fleet spanned outwards, their guns and main batteries at the ready.

James was in the unknown regions, at an area his navigators predicted the ships to end up in. He was in a star system that his navigators said was called "A-738", which wasn't very helpful. After all, these were the unknown regions. They were...well...unknown. As General James silently watched the area around him, he gave the order for the entire fleet to take a circular formation.

Immediately, the ships obeyed. James's ship, which was the flagship, stayed in the center, surrounded by five escorts. The several thousand other ships in the fleet assembled in a circular fashion around James's ship, with main warships and corvettes in the outer rings, and with carriers and destroyers in the inner regions.

James watched silently. Minute by minute. Hour by hour. After three hours, James was about to order for another warp, when the entire fleet of ships he had been hearing about warped in. Without hesitation, those ships began firing, sending artillery shells that pounded the shields of the ships. "Fire!" yelled James, clutching his armrests, "officer, why did we not see them coming out of warp?"

"They were moving too fast!" yelled the officer, "our trackers didn't find them until it was too late!". James growled under his breath. Great. An enemy which could move so fast, that even his sensors couldn't track them. Wasn't that just lovely.

Right as James was about to issue an order, however, a voice spoke. _You are weak_. James looked around, but didn't see anyone talk. Everyone else in the ship seemed to have heard it. With chilling realization, James realized that the voice was coming from _inside his head_. He suddenly noticed, in the center of the entire enemy fleet, was a weird glowing light. That must've been the source of the voice.

Without hesitation, James pointed a finger at the center of the fleet, "Open fire at the center of the enemy fleet!" he yelled, "order offensive maneuver 67, warships full broadside, corvettes and destroyers with torpedoes. Deploy all bombers and fighters, now!" The fleet immediately responded, raining gunfire down on the enemy fleet, and down at the glowing thing in the center of the fleet.

"Sir, we're having no effects on the ships in the fleet," reported one of the officers, "their shields are just too strong.". James was about to respond, when the enemy ships suddenly radically changed course. Without warning, they all made a 180 degree turn, charging straight into the outer ring of warships. On the screen, James saw fourteen of his destroyers and 23 of his corvettes get annihilated instantly.

"Positive one side, move back, warships, provide full support with cover fire and missiles, regroup into defensive formation." The warships immediately fired again, sending high-explosive shells raining on the enemy ships. They had no effect whatsoever. The ships just kept on coming. Slowly, the left flank fell back, retreating an forming their own defensive formation. James quickly made another order, merging with the left flank to form a single defensive block.

"Alright," James picked up his phone, making an order to the entire fleet, "fire all long-range missiles. Aim at the center of the enemy fleet. At the glowing thing!" immediately, the destroyers let loose with their missile payload, launching long-range high-explosive penetrative missiles at the center of the enemy fleet.

There was a massive explosion, that lit up the entire field of view of the bridge windows. The explosion was so big, it even knocked some of his own destroyers back. But when the light cleared, and the dust went away, James saw a perfectly intact enemy fleet, still circling a very brightly-lit center. James roared with frustration.

 _You are not worth my attention, weakling._

James looked behind him, right in time to see a...thing standing there. It looked like a human, except its face was like glass, filled with light and a smear of colors. It stared right at James. The image was too much for him. He felt his body heating up. He looked down, right in time to see himself burst into flames…

Over a hundred light years away, on Mavis's planet, Mavis looked up at the sky. Her extrasensory perception had just alerted her to something bad. Something that involved the final remnants of the Gordian Empire getting destroyed. Destroyed by the guardian. Mavis looked up, and sighed. She called Josiah over, and said, "Where's the object right now?"

Josiah glanced at his laptop, "it's about 236 light years away," he said, "they should not be able to get here until tomorrow. But it looks as if that they stopped just then for some reason...but no matter, they're back on course right now." Josiah closed the laptop, looking at Mavis, "why did you want to know?" he asked.

Mavis looked back up at the sky, "I don't know," she murmured, "I'm pretty sure that the Gordian Empire just died though."

* * *

 **Author's Note: I'll be heading onto a camping trip tomorrow, and there are going to be people over this afternoon, so I won't be able to update until 4/15**


	134. Mavis's First Defeat

Josiah made the announcement the next afternoon. The Guardian was a hundred light years out, but was closing fast, moving several times faster than the speed of light. After some more accurate calculations, Josiah confirmed that the guardian was heading directly for the city Mavis was in, which only reinforced Mavis's idea that the Guardian was coming after her.

Mavis allowed the citizens to rest that day, telling them to prepare for combat. She had the doors sealed off at maximum security, and had all scanners and sensors working at full capacity. Mavis herself didn't sleep. She wasn't tired whatsoever. Johnny, however, was a different case. He fell asleep as soon as Mavis announced that he could.

A few hours after Mavis made the announcement, Josiah informed Mavis that a star system 87 light years away from them had been completely wiped off the map. Mavis told Josiah that it was fine. The only thing that Josiah's report told her was that the guardian was exceptionally powerful, something that she already knew, and that it had passed through that specific star system.

Mavis watched the skies, her extrasensory perception making her eyes glow a bright shade of blue. She could feel the power of the Guardian, despite it being several light years away. It was immensely powerful. More powerful than Mavis ever thought a person could be. She shivered, remembering the way the guardian looked at her in her dream. It creeped her out.

Mavis clenched her fists. What was this feeling? This feeling of heat rising in her body? The feeling of exhilaration? The feeling of being nervous? With a little jolt, Mavis realized that she had become so powerful, that nobody even posed a challenge to her anymore. Nobody...except this Guardian. The guardian would give Mavis a worthy fight. A fight that she may actually lose in.

Looking out towards the skies, Mavis realized how quiet the city was now. There wasn't a single sound. No drinking. No laughing. No talking. Everyone was sleeping. Mavis cursed under her breath. The people in this city were counting on her to defend the city. She had to win the fight. If she didn't, then everything that she's worked for for the past several days would've been for nothing.

It was while the stars were coming out when the alarms began ringing. Josiah scrambled out of his office, waving his hands in the air and yelling, "Mavis, they're coming! They're here!" Mavis, who was in her room at that time, didn't even hesitate. She jumped out the window, landing on the ground, and looked up right in time to see a horde of fighters and ships jump from warp into the atmosphere. Above Mavis, Johnny poked his head out the window, looking up. Mavis felt the level of fear in the city rise dramatically as soon as the bells started ringing.

Mavis magnified her voice, not bothering to hide her own anxiousness, "Everyone, get to the walls!" she said, "have all weapons at the ready!" Mavis saw the marketers grab their weapons, and run over to the walls, arming the machine guns and mortars that were mounted on it. Nearby, the ground-to-space guns began to fire, sending massive artillery shells smashing into the fleet. Even from this distance, Mavis felt the strength of the fleet. Their armor was nearly indestructible. Their weapons were overwhelmingly advanced.

The ground-to-space guns didn't actually damage any of the ships, but they did slow the ships down. As the fleet began to slowly descend towards the ground, Mavis noticed that the fleet wasn't going for the city. They were landing several miles away, on top of a sand dune. From this distance, Mavis could already see the glowing center of the fleet. The Guardian.

Mavis's voice came back through, magnified yet again, "Do not look at the center of the fleet," she warned, "the center of the fleet is the most dangerous part. Do not look at it, or get near it. Only I can do that." this announcement was only met with yet another higher spike in fear. If Mavis said that it was dangerous, it was probably dangerous.

Above them, the _Suncrusher_ also opened fire, sending massive waves of artillery shells at the enemy lines. Mavis felt the massive explosions rock the ground, but not a single enemy ship was destroyed. They _were_ pretty powerful. Mavis looked down at her hands, which were now shaking slightly. She was ready for this fight. Or was she? Was she ready to take on the Guardian? Someone so powerful, even the dead respected him?

Mavis looked around, at the men lined up around the wall. Several of them looked as if they were about to cry. Mavis clenched her fists. She wasn't ready to accept responsibility for hundreds of lost lives. She was already responsible for plenty of deaths. She wasn't going to be responsible for any more.

Johnny put a hand on Mavis's shoulder. Mavis saw that he also looked nervous. His hands kept on spontaneously turning into electricity, then turning back into flesh. "Mavis…" Johnny asked slowly, "you think you're ready?". Mavis gulped. To be honest, Mavis knew that she was the most ready that she would ever be. But at the same time, she didn't know if it was enough. Would this be her first defeat?

"I'm fine," muttered Mavis, "Johnny, I'm going to have you leading the marketers for this one. There's no point in running. We can only fight at this point. While you keep the fleet busy, I'll go and confront the Guardian. If I don't do that, then many more will die. The Guardian _is_ powerful, Johnny."

Johnny nodded. He kissed Mavis, taking her by surprise, and when he broke the kiss, he smiled a little, "I love you," he murmured. Before Mavis could even respond, he turned away, walking towards the line of marketers who were on the wall by that time. He quickly assumed control, making orders and positioning the marketers at specific points in the wall.

Mavis jumped on top of the wall, gazing over the sand dunes, at where the fleet had landed. There must've been thousands of ships in the fleets. As Mavis's extrasensory perception scanned the landscape, she suddenly felt a rumbling noise, and a scraping noise, as if there were a bunch of people with kitchen knives running towards her location.

A few hundred feet away from Mavis, coming over a particularly large sand dune, were a bunch of eight-foot tall giants. Mavis immediately marked them as more dangerous than the usual opponent. They each stood tall, kind of pridefully, with massive bulging muscles, and four arms. They held no weapons, but were clearly physically powerful. The machine guns mounted on the walls opened fire, spraying plasma and energy bolts at the enemy lines. Mavis saw most of the giants actually resist a dozen shots before going down. They were quite durable. However, Mavis also saw the Guardian himself, slowly walking towards the city, a few hundred yards behind his giants.

Mavis knew what to do. She jumped up, flying over the heads of most of the giants, and landed behind the first wave. About a hundred feet in front of her was the Guardian, surrounded by the second wave of giants. Mavis saw the guardian raise his hands, and point at Mavis without saying anything. Instantly, the giants turned and charged directly at her, bearing down on her.

The attack was pointless. Mavis didn't even slow her run. She collided directly with the horde of giants, ripping, tearing, punching, and throwing them across the sand dunes, smashing them against the ground, and disintegrating them through telekinesis. Within one millisecond, Mavis had killed every giant who had been around the Guardian, which totalled to about 700 giants.

The guardian, however, was a totally different battle. Right as Mavis killed the last giant, she felt herself get lifted up, and thrown back, smashing into a sand dune. The Guardian then blasted Mavis with his own telekinesis, sending a 900-foot tall plume of sand flying up in the area Mavis was just in. Mavis appeared directly behind the guardian, punching him, but before her fist connected, the Guardian vanished, and reappeared a few hundred feet away.

 _Interesting_ , Mavis heard the Guardian in her head _, So you are the one I have been hunting all along_.

Before Mavis could even reply, the Guardian lashed out, sending out telekinetic attacks at Mavis from all angles. These attacks were too much even for Mavis. She only managed to dodge 587 out of the 590 attacks, each one which happened at faster than instant teleportation. The next thing Mavis knew, she was flying back, slamming into a sand dune. Mavis got up, vanishing, reappearing behind the Guardian, and sent him flying back into the ground as well. However, before the Guardian hit the ground, he vanished and reappeared right behind Mavis, bringing his fist down on her face.

Mavis's reaction time was perfect. She moved her head out of the way, bringing her elbow up, and ramming it into the Guardian's face. The Guardian stumbled back a little, clearly surprised, but still didn't show any signs of pain.

Mavis quickly formulated another attack. Two one-mile tall sand giants appeared on either side of the Guardian, as Mavis poured some life force into the ground. The giants slammed into the Guardian, and Mavis flew directly between them, slamming her fist into the guardian as well. However, before Mavis's fist connected, both sand giants exploded, and a telekinetic blast sent Mavis also flying backwards.

Mavis stopped herself in midair, right as she heard fighting temporarily stop behind her. She looked behind her, right in time to see the marketers kill the last giant. They looked terrible. Most of the marketers were wounded somehow, some of them losing their legs and arms. Johnny himself had a cut over his forehead, and appeared to also be bleeding pretty badly from his hip. But even so, they had defeated the first wave. But only just.

Before Mavis could even look back at the Guardian, she felt herself get thrown up into the air, and felt a ball of flame explode right on top of her. This fire was hot. It nearly burnt Mavis. Mavis's extrasensory perception told her that it was around 14 quadrillion degrees celsius, but was also contained, so the marketers weren't harmed.

Mavis, ignoring the heat, flew straight through the flames, slamming into the Guardian at full force, hitting him so hard with both telekinesis and raw force that all the sand within a five hundred feet radius was melted into a halo of glass. Mavis felt herself get hit again by telekinesis, and flew back, flying far into the atmosphere. She saw the Guardian fly up to her, and dodged his next attack. Mavis released an atomic explosion, right on top of the Guardian, which was so powerful, it punched a hole straight through the atmosphere of the planet.

The guardian flew at Mavis through the explosion, and Mavis saw him. Concentrating, Mavis formed a 500-foot thick block of graphene between her and the Guardian. This didn't stop the Guardian, but it gave some time for Mavis to react. Right as the Guardian drilled through the block of graphene, Mavis accelerated herself, and the two of them connected fists in the atmosphere.

A huge explosion, so large, it melted the sand, which was over 20 miles below them, into the biggest glass mine in the galaxy. Both Mavis and the Guardian were knocked down onto the planet, slamming into the remains of the sand dune. Behind Mavis, Mavis felt the life forces of the marketers, still alive in the city. She breathed a sigh of relief. The telekinetic shield that she had formed around the city seemed to be holding.

Behind the Guardian, however, Mavis also saw a third wave of giants running towards the city. _Such spirit,_ Mavis heard the guardian say in her head, _I have never imagined that there existed such a powerful person as you, Mavis Dracula….but no matter...I will defeat you both physically, and emotionally. Your little city will be burned to the ground, its inhabitants slain, and your precious husband, Johnny, dead. You will be next_.

That was a mistake.

The next thing the Guardian knew, Mavis had appeared on top of him, grabbing his neck and slamming him to the ground. "I may not be able to defeat you.." growled Mavis, "so I might as well give this all I have…"

The guardian blasted Mavis back, but Mavis quickly steadied herself in midair, and turned around. She rocketed straight at the Guardian, creating a massive telekinetic wave, that was so large, and so humongously powerful, that even the Guardian backed up for a second. Mavis, however, didn't hesitate. She released the wave.

Immediately, the entire planet began to shake. The guardian was thrown back. The giants were blown to dust. The force of the blast was so strong, a rift appeared right behind the Guardian. It was a tear in reality. A tear in the fabric of space-time. Before the guardian could even react, Mavis had grabbed him, and the two of them were hurled through the rift.

The last thing Mavis saw when she went through the rift was what she had left behind. A giant dune of glass. A shattered planet. But the city was still alive. Mavis closed her eyes. The city was still alive. Johnny was still alive. She had done her job well.


	135. Otherworldly

Mavis flew through the rift. She was going faster than she ever imagined possible. The Guardian had been lost ages ago, slipping into some other section of the rift. All around Mavis, she saw planets, star systems, entire galaxies fly past her. Ahead of her, she saw a dim light, that steadily grew brighter as Mavis drew near it. Mavis frowned. Was she hallucinating? Was she about to die?

As Mavis drew near the end of the rift, her entire vision was covered with a thick sheet of white. Mavis closed her eyes. Whatever came next, she was ready for it. Mavis felt her body begin to grow warm. Around her, the rift seemed to be closing in on her. It was crushing her. Mavis instinctively reached out, and punched the side of the rift, not really expecting anything to happen.

But something did happen. The place where Mavis's fist connected with the rift quickly formed another tear within the rift, and the next thing Mavis knew, she was hurtling through that rift, and before she knew it, she had stumbled out of it, onto a solid ground. A ground that was made of what seemed to be concrete.

Mavis got back up, dusting herself off. Around her, tall buildings rose high into the skyline. In fact, Mavis's extrasensory perception told her that there _was_ no sky. It was just an endless amount of up-ness. On the sides of the buildings were large billboards, each one having stuff that Mavis didn't understand written on them. Stuff like, _Majoris: Energy Output 97%,_ and, _Majoris: Pacifism Output 12%._

This "Majoris" seemed to be a pretty big part of this city. As Mavis got up, she cried out with pain, and collapsed again. Her body was on fire. Every particle of it felt as if it were grabbed and shaken around voraciously. Slowly, Mavis forced herself into a standing position. She then took note of the place she was in. Mavis was standing in an alleyway. The rift that had opened behind her had just vanished.

As Mavis walked through the alleyway, she was greeted with the sight of a completely empty street. The only person there was a man wearing a trench coat on the opposite corner, who was reading a newspaper. Mavis's extrasensory perception quickly read the front of the newspaper, and saw the title: _Majoris Subject #7839 Marked as First person to rift-travel._

Rift-travel. Mavis quickly turned her head down and began to walk in the opposite direction. She had just rift-travelled. What did it mean, Subject #7839? Mavis was almost certain that the newspaper referred to her. As Mavis crossed through another street, she saw a relatively large skyscraper loom over her. Without really thinking, Mavis had walked inside of it.

There were a few people in first floor of the skyscraper. As Mavis walked in, the lady at the front desk looked up, but Mavis waved her hands, and she immediately went back to doing what she was just doing. The other people in the lobby didn't even notice Mavis. They were too busy typing stuff onto computers, or entering things onto their consoles.

Mavis silently made her way upstairs. All around her, the walls were made of a strange blue crystal. Mavis thought it was blue paint, but realized that it was crystal only after going near it. Mavis didn't exactly know what she was doing. She simply walked up the stairs, kind of in a daze. The full force of what happened was crashing down on her shoulders now.

She had torn the fabric of reality, and escaped reality...into this place. But what was this place? Mavis reached the next floor, which was covered with office cells and computers that lined the walls. She clambered into one, and saw that the cell had a computer and a curved television screen.

Mavis sat down, turning on the television. Immediately, she was greeted with grim news. News that even she understood, _Majoris: Grand Guardian forced back into the Rift, reappearing in High Command. New bounty of 900 Eradicates for the first one to bring back the subject, dead or alive._

Mavis growled. Okay. So she had a fat bounty on her head now. But even so, as Mavis watched the area around her, she didn't see any soldiers marching around on the streets, and didn't see any security guards bursting through the doors demanding to capture Mavis. It looked as if everything was normal for now. Everything was okay in this place.

Whatever. Mavis turned on the computer, which automatically opened up into an unnamed search engine. Mavis typed in the words "What is Majoris" on the search engine, hitting enter, and leaning back as she watched the computer load the results. Soon enough, the results had appeared, and they made Mavis's head swim.

 _The Majoris is a universe that we have built our world upon. To fuel our huge cities, we capture the energy that is outputted by the universe, and use it to our own advantage. This is done using a Cortexial M-61 tenth dimensional subspace accelerator, that captures the photonic particles that fit quantum positive effects, and reverse them. This releases energy according to the equation E=mc^500_

Sighing, Mavis sat back in her chair. Behind her, another worker walked into the room, sitting down at an office cell right next to Mavis. Another four people walked up the stairs, heading into the floors above, and soon enough Mavis heard the sounds of chairs scraping the ground above her, and knew that those people were also supposed to be working.

As Mavis relaxed a little on her chair, she was jolted back to the reality of the situation when her mind crossed Johnny. He was still somewhere in Majoris. He was still somewhere in the universe. What did he think? Did he think that Mavis was dead? Or perhaps he thought that Mavis was alive, but would never return? Mavis gripped the armrests. She would return.

Next thing Mavis knew, she was typing into the search engine: _Where is the Cortexial M-61 Subspace Accelerator._ Immediately, an answer popped up, saying that it was in the center of the city, which was approximately 587 thousand light years away. Behind Mavis, she felt someone poke her head into the cell. The person was about to speak, when Mavis snapped her neck with telekinesis, and forced her under the desk.

Mavis got back up, dusting herself off, and walking out of the cell. She knew where to go now. Mavis walked out of the office room briskly, and to avoid attention, went to the bathroom first, before phasing through the walls, and into the outside world. Nearby, a man wearing a trench coat sat in a bench nearby, typing something onto his laptop. Mavis went around the building, until she found herself facing an abandoned street.

Concentrating, Mavis blasted off, leaving nothing behind her. She found the area around her melting away, and soon enough had reappeared in a completely different location. Mavis knew that this location was the center of the city, because her extrasensory perception was telling her that. Here, the streets were much more crowded. People milled around, some of them with papers in their hands, and some of them talking to each other.

Above them, on a huge billboard, was a picture of Mavis's face, with the words _900 Eradicates_ printed in fine letters on the front of it. Mavis quickly put her head down, not wanting to attract attention, and walked around the place, soon enough finding her way into what looked like an outer-universal cafe bar. There, Mavis mind-wiped the bartender, and got a few free drinks.

As Mavis was resting on the table, she began to formulate a plan in her mind. She would make her way to the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator, and use it to get the Guardian's attention. After that, she would force him to give her a way out of this place, whatever it was.

* * *

Johnny stood in the remains of the desert. All around him was melted glass and glowing-red sand. Behind Johnny, the marketers were wandering around, careful not to step in the hot spots. It's been three hours since Mavis and the Guardian had vanished. Johnny was still confused as to what exactly happened, but whatever happened, it involved the Guardian and Johnny vanishing completely.

"Here's another one!" Johnny turned around, just in time to see a marketers shoot one of the giants in the face, to make sure that it was dead, and a group of other marketers ran in to help that person drag out a piece of twisted metal from the melted glass. There were benefits to the attack. The material that the guardian's ships were made of were found to be incredibly durable, and could resist pretty much any attack. The marketers had took it upon themselves to loot as much of it as possible. But even so, nobody knew where Mavis went.

Johnny caught Josiah's eyes, who was walking around a few yards away, harvesting some of the glass that was in the ground now. He held up some sort of device to it, which beeped to Josiah. Johnny saw the words: _ten trillion degrees_ pop up on the screen. Josiah then turned to Johnny, and scrambled over to him, brushing off some fragmented pieces of glass off of his shirt.

"Johnny," gasped Josiah, "the battle that happened here was one of great proportions. I can't even believe what these readings are showing. Most of what happened should've been impossible. Not only did they manage to punch a hole through the atmosphere, they each released ten trillion degrees celsius per particle per hit!"

Johnny frowned, "Shouldn't that harm the city then?" he asked, "shouldn't that be able to destroy the city? And where's Mavis? Where did the guardian go? What happened?" his flurry of questions caught Josiah off guard slightly, causing him to pause for a second before answering, which he did so quite hesitantly, as if afraid of being mocked at.

"Um…" Josiah stammered, "my devices have calculated the energy output and entropy output of the portal that formed a millisecond Mavis and the Guardian vanished. According to the devices...there is no other explanation...they created a tear in the fabric of reality, and got sucked through it."

Johnny stopped for a moment, "So…" Johnny wasn't quite surprised as he was worried, "is she dead?" he asked grimly, "is Mavis dead?". To be honest, Josiah knew that Mavis was probably dead. Even she didn't have that type of strength. Nobody could survive a reality tear. Nobody. Not even the most powerful people. But even so, Josiah knew that if anyone _could_ survive the reality tear, it was Mavis.

"It's not confirmed," murmured Josiah softly, "but they were accelerated to two hundred thousand teletorts, or 200,000 times the speed of instantaneous teleportation. Anything that is bound by the laws of physics should've been ripped to shreds by that...but I don't know...Mavis _might've_ survived it."

Those words meant the world to Johnny. He stood up, a little taller. "Alright," he said, "Josiah, get back to your observatory, keep an eye out for anything that might hint that Mavis is still alive. I'll handle the marketers." Josiah nodded, scrambling back behind the walls of the city, and going through the streets, until he vanished behind the door to his observatory.

Johnny turned around, issuing orders to the marketers. Most of them heeded them immediately, not even questioning them. They had just seen the person whom they thought was indestructible potentially get defeated. Johnny wasn't going to push them, but had to get them back into the city. As the last stragglers entered into the marketer city, Johnny turned around, and shut the large doors. He had one thought, and only one thought running through his head.

Mavis had a chance to be alive.

She might be alive.

Was she alive? She had to be.

But it's impossible. She couldn't have survived it. Nothing survives what Mavis just went through.

Well too bad, impossibility does not apply to Mavis.

Johnny straightened his shoulders, walking back to his room. The next day, he would figure out what to do. Right now, he would sleep with the fact that Mavis _might_ be alive. As he entered his room, he sat down at his bed, and fell asleep. He had a tingling feeling in the back of his spine. He would see Mavis again.


	136. Flight of Mavis

Mavis leaned over, looking at the paper that was in her hands. It had been two hours since she's entered the cafe, and Mavis was trying to monopolize as much as possible on the newspapers and magazines that were scattered around the table. Of course, Mavis's extrasensory perception was kicking in as well, sending strange signals running down Mavis's spine. Signals that told her that she wasn't even in the universe anymore. At first, Mavis didn't believe her extrasensory perception. They must've been products of her imagination. Side effects of rift-travelling.

Well, either way, Mavis wasn't about to attack a location without even understanding where she was. She flipped through the pages of the many books and magazines that she had in front of her. She passed by many things, some of them quite odd. From tenth dimensional dog soap, to quantum cough drops. But ever so often, Mavis would see those words flash by her eyes. _Majoris_. Mavis had already made the conclusion that the Majoris was the universe that she was just in. She was just trying to figure out where she was at the current moment.

After a few hours of endlessly reading newspaper articles and magazines, Mavis finally found out that the place she was in was actually a construct that spanned around the entire universe. It was a near-perfect oval. On the outside of the oval, there were trillions to quadrillions of cities, and an endless amount of aliens. On the inside, the _Majorian_ army stood, waiting for the sign of any intelligient life to find them. Mavis took all of this information from what she read, not by what she sensed.

But the Guardian was still alive, something that was causing Mavis quite a bit of alarm. All around her, on the television and on the screens of just about every electronic in the entire cafe, her face was popping up, with a fat, 900 eradicates printed in big bold letters underneath it. Mavis was, luckily, able to protect herself, by forming a fog shield around herself. She telekinetically altered the neurons in everyone's brains, so that when they looked at Mavis, their memory would grow foggy, and they wouldn't remember her. Through this, Mavis was able to keep a relatively decent stealth cloak on herself.

Mavis sat back up, stretching a little. Her back ached from all this sitting and thinking, but she knew that she had little choice in the matter. At the moment, she only wanted to stay hidden. As Mavis began to scan more of the huge city with her extrasensory perception, she saw, at the very center of the entire area, a large facility. Mavis's senses told her that it was the place where she would find the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator.

This was the situation that Mavis hated the most. The waiting. The thinking. The part that involved debating with yourself whether or not to continue on with a plan that you didn't know would succeed. Mavis knew that the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator was a crucial part of this extrauniversal world, but she also knew that if she attacked it, she would be met with impossibly powerful guards. She didn't even know if the accelerator would give her anything useful. All she wanted to do was return to her own universe.

Mavis set the cup of hyperstrong alcohol that she was drinking down. Here, they served 600% concentrated alcohol. To most regular humans, that would kill them immediately. To Mavis, it only made her throat a slight bit tingly for a second. Her eyes glowed, as she began to silently think of a way to proceed. Mavis knew that she should take action. If she didn't, then the Guardian would eventually find her, and would have the advantage on her. Mavis didn't like hiding anyways. She wanted to be the one to take action. She wanted to be the one to attack.

Standing up, Mavis brushed some dust off of her shirt again, before turning around, and walking out the door, passing a man with a trench coat on, who was typing something on his computer. As Mavis passed by, she saw the bartender glance at her, and she quickly mind-wiped the bartender before passing through the door completely.

As soon as Mavis walked out the door, however, Mavis felt a familiar sensation run down her spine. It was all too familiar, and Mavis knew exactly what to do. She bent a full 320 degrees backwards, dodging the invisible blade that came out from nowhere. Mavis did a backflip, landing twenty feet away, and turned around. Her extrasensory perception scanned the area frantically, and Mavis immediately found four invisible humanoids standing around the outside of the bar.

 _Mavis Dracula, you are being arrested for treason against Universal Order. Prepare to die,_ said one of the invisible humanoids. It charged straight at Mavis, going far faster than the speed of light, swinging its blade out from underneath Mavis. Mavis backed up, dodging the attack, and blasted the humanoid back. Before the humanoid hit the opposite wall, however, it disintegrated into sand-like particles, and reformed a few feet away.

 _Useless_. Said the Guard. The other two humanoids ran forward. The invisibility of both their weapons and themselves, along with their speed, made them relatively difficult opponents. But it was still enough to manage. Mavis dodged the first humanoid's attack, then ducked, avoiding an invisible blade that was thrown by the second humanoid. Mavis was about to grab that blade, before it vanished and reappeared in the guard's hands.

Mavis growled. These guys were tough. She suddenly felt the area around her slowly dissolving. The guards still stood in front of her, but the place they were in quickly faded out, the cafe and street vanishing, and the next thing Mavis knew, she was standing in a lonely brick alleyway somewhere else. _Your puny powers are nothing compared to us_ , said the guards, _our powers allow us to cross trans-dimensional space, and allows us to create environments that suit our needs._

Before the guard could say any more, Mavis had charged up to him, blasting him to dust, that quickly reformed back into the humanoid. Before Mavis could attack more, a solid brick wall formed right in front of her. Mavis smashed through the brick in an instant, but by that time, the guard that she was attacking was already gone. Mavis was hit in the back of the head by some sort of blunt object at that moment, and flew across the alleyway, slamming into another brick wall that appeared in front of her, and smashing through it.

All around Mavis, knives and shredders appeared on all sides of her, slowly closing in. Mavis hissed with frustration. She hated this type of battle. Environment battles. But if that's what the guards wanted her to fight with, then its what she would fight with. As the shredders slowly began to grow near Mavis, she held up her hand, and snapped her fingers.

"Enough."

Instantly, the shredders vanished. Behind the shredders, the three guards were revealed. Mavis raised her hands, and the dimensional enviornment shifted, this time going from a dense brick alleyway, to an empty basketball court. Mavis concentrated, forcing the basketball to become a 300 teraton nuclear bomb, and was about to detonate it, before the guards changed the enviornment yet again, this time turning the ground into a mass of strange venomous looking vines, that quickly ensnared Mavis.

Mavis tore her feet out of the vines, this time using her powers to shatter the dimension completely, causing all four of them to stumble out back into the real world, right in front of the cafe yet again. By now, the skies, or whatever the skies were, had dimmed to a dull grey color. People were out walking around in the streets, a few of them glancing at Mavis in a funny way.

Mavis, however, was more focused on surviving. She felt something coming at her, and managed to dodge a blade that was flying at her at 900 teletorts. The blade reappeared in the hands of the invisible guard who had just thrown it. Mavis was sick of these guards at this point. They were annoying, fast, and fought decently. If anything, they were probably the strongest infantry that Mavis had ever faced.

Mavis felt her hands begin to light up. She wanted _so badly_ , just to end these guys. She was going to do it. Raising her hands, Mavis concentrated, and forced the three guards into a separate dimension, closing it before the guards could even react. She then turned around, and teleported away, towards the edge of the city.

As Mavis appeared in the edge of the city, the first thing she noticed was the metal ground. In the city, the ground was covered with cement, or brick, or some other sort of common building material. Here, however, the entire area was covered with a thick layer of shiny white metal. Around her, short stubby houses with small chimneys rose from the ground in small humps. Metallic, robotic looking _things_ walked around, doing their business. This was probably the rural version of an extradimensional city.

"Are you lost, dear?" Mavis jumped, and turned around, right in time to see a short, metallic looking _thing_ ask her the question, "you look a little...stressed," commented the thing, "do you need a place to stay? I mean...I don't know if I'm the one to ask for such an honor...we rarely get humans…"

Mavis knew that she should say no. She should reject this thing, and move on. It was probably a trap. It was probably a lie. But even as Mavis was pondering this, her extrasensory perception kicked in, informing Mavis that this...thing...was not a liar. It was genuinely interested in helping her. Mavis slowly nodded, "Yeah…" she murmured, "I need some help...do you guys have any...food?"

The metallic thing looked up at Mavis, and it was then when Mavis got a good look at the features of the creature. It was short, around three feet tall, with two glowing eyes at the sides of its face. It had what looked like a beak as well. Mavis saw screws and nails that were embedded into the creature, and immediately shuddered. This thing was an automaton. Every creature in this area was an automaton. Even so, that didn't stop Mavis from following the thing into its home.

The roof was a little low, forcing Mavis to stoop over a little, but she still fit snugly in the place. In the corner, a black fire burned, washing heat onto Mavis's face. There were no beds in the room, only a tiny pile of cloth in the corner that looked a little rumpled up. The metallic creature turned to Mavis, giving her some beverages. Mavis quickly gulped up the entire thing. The beverage itself was made of a strange silvery liquid. It tasted like mango juice. Which was actually surprisingly good.

"So…" Mavis took another sip of the liquid, "I have _so many_ questions...who are you? Where is this place? What do you guys do? Where's the city relative to here?" all the questions came pouring out, before Mavis could stop herself. The thing looked a little surprised, but not offended or taken aback. It did a robotic sigh, then replied quickly.

"We are the Murian Race," said the creature, "we're a group of sentient automatons that have learned to live life as close to that of humans as possible. This place is known as the Murian Regions, or otherwise known as the Outer Cities. We are miners. The city is approximately...oh...about an hour away at one thousand teletorts."

Mavis was surprised, not only by the answers that she got so quickly, but by the voice of the Mur. Usually, robots were really bad at sounding like a regular human. They had that same conventional robot voice that anyone would expect. But this robot...this mur was actually good at speaking. It had a legitimate american accent. Which was actually kind of nostalgic, now that Mavis thought of it.

"You speak good english," commented Mavis lamely. She didn't really know what else to say. But her comment didn't really seem to have a severe effect on the Mur. It simply shifted a little, and said, "Yes...alot of people tell me that...honestly though, it wasn't too hard learning. Is there a reason why you're here? We rarely ever get visitors, and the few visitors we get are often smugglers and criminals. We usually help them. Visitors are so rare, that we cherish each one."

Mavis silently stared at the walls. _Don't do it_ , she thought. But even so, she was desperate. She needed answers. She needed information. She needed confirmation on the theories that she had formed so far. Mavis leaned forward, "I got alot to ask you…" she began.

* * *

"She teleported to the Outer City," said one of the Guardian's advisors, "she's...yes, we just got dimensional confirmation. She teleported somewhere within this 50,000 light-century radius...should we send out spy drones, Guardian?"

The Guardian nodded, "Do it immediately," he said, "I want answers, _now_. Get those damn guards out of the dimension that Mavis trapped them in, and sending them back hunting."

The advisor nodded, and went back to his computer, which was now covered with colored lettering and coding. The Guardian turned around, watching the window of his control center, which faced the city. In his entire existence, he had never met someone with the strength or speed of Mavis Dracula. He had never even anticipated how strong she would be.

The Guardian clenched his fists. He would find Mavis, and kill her. She was a threat to his existence, as well as his entire empire. He had to preserve both. And there was no other way then cutting off the head of the snake.

Mavis _had_ to die. No matter what.


	137. The Murs

The Mur had been talking for about an hour by now. It was good that it didn't have any vocal chords, because if it did, then it would be tired for sure by now. But on the good side, Mavis had many of her theories confirmed. The Murs were a sentient group of automatons who were once manufactured by the Guardian and his followers to do menial tasks, such as farming or factory work. But as the days went on, the Murs were abandoned, as more advanced machines began to replace them. The result was the Outer City, made up of the Murs who had to make a living now. They were often viewed with distaste by the humans and those who inhabited the inner city.

As for where she was, the Mur had a very confusing answer. According to the Mur, whom Mavis had found out was called "Alyssa", they were in the trans-universal dimensional space, which was pretty much the thing that separated the multiverses into universes. The Guardian was the first one in this place, who had surrounded a universe of his choosing, called _Majoris_ , with an indestructible material known as Kharr. That was the metal that Mavis had seen outside.

As for the fact that Mavis was a criminal, Alyssa was perfectly fine with it. She's seen criminals before. They were often very annoying, according to her, but Mavis appeared to be an exception. "Here," said Alyssa, after a small silence between the two of them, "have some of this food...I heard that even humans like this, not only Murs." Alyssa slid over a tray of what looked remotely like chocolate chip cookies. Mavis grabbed one and munched on it, enjoying an alien taste that she couldn't even pin down to anything human.

"Thanks," mumbled Mavis, "so...about my way back to the center of the city…". Alyssa held up her hand, and Mavis fell silent. "I got something for you." said Alyssa, turning back to the cabinet, and opening it. She rummaged around in the cabinet for a little while, before pulling out a thin, rolled-up piece of paper, and handed it to Mavis. Mavis opened it up, and immediately saw a massive map. All around the edges, there were drawn-in marks that appeared to have come from crayons or something.

"This is a map of the entire city," said Alyssa, pointing to the paper in Mavis's hands. "We are _here_ ," she pointed to a small purple dot on the far right hand edge of the map, "you want to get _here_." her hand drifted towards the center of the map. "I know…" murmured Mavis. It was true. Her extrasensory perception had already scanned the entire place, telling her where she was relative to the center of the city. Either way, Alyssa wasn't impressed at all. "Alright…" she said, "here are the secret tele-trains. You want to take those into the center of the city."

"Tele-trains?" asked Mavis, "are those like...trains that teleport?". Alyssa nodded, "Exactly," she said, "look, we have to have _some_ way of getting around the city, right? When the humans kicked us out, we built our own transportation systems, and used them to go into the city when we needed to. Naturally, since it was built by us, the humans never recognized it to even exist. It doesn't even show up on the official map, and it isn't regulated by the authorities, so naturally, people like you have a better chance taking this route."

Mavis nodded slowly. She turned around, just in time to see two other Murs walk into the house. One of them stood quite tall for a Mur, about four feet tall, and the other one stood at 3 feet, like Alyssa. Both of them froze when they saw Mavis there. "Alyssa, is she a visitor?" asked the taller one, "I told you that humans aren't to be welcome here." Mavis winced. She had almost forgotten that she was a vampire at this point.

"She's not here to get us in trouble," said Alyssa, "she's just stopping by, and I was telling her how to get back into the city.". The taller Mur slowly nodded, still staring at Mavis carefully. Mavis got the feeling that she wasn't as trusted as she thought she was. The other Mur who had walked in, the 3-foot tall one, chimed in, "Oh come on, Jack…" she said softly, "don't be like that…"

Jack, the taller Mur, sighed, and sat down, "Whatever," he mumbled, "point is, girl, you have to get going by nightfall. I don't like people showing up at my home unannounced. Especially if its a human." Mavis should've taken offence by this, but for some reason, she knew that Jack was saying all of this out of sincerity. There was a note of tiredness to his voice. The same thing that Mavis always heard when she talked to any of her friends after a long battle.

After a few moments of silence, Alyssa decided to speak, "So how did work go today?" she asked eagerly, "how was it?". Jack shrugged, sitting down. "Got some scrap metal and wood today," he grumbled, "we'll be fine for the next week or so. Also got some meat, but we need to save that for winter...anyways...what's your name, girl?"

Mavis looked up, "Mavis," she said, "my name's Mavis."

"Mavis...an interesting name." Jack got up, tossing some wood into the fire, which crackled even louder now. "So where do you come from?" he asked, "the inner city? I have a few friends who come from there...but they're all dead now, ain't they…" Mavis replied swiftly, and honestly, since she already told Alyssa where she had came from, "I come from _Majoris_ ," she said, "the Guardian...he's looking for me right now...so I _should_ probably get going."

"You come from the _Majoris_?" even Jack looked surprised, "I have never seen someone come from the universe itself...how did you get here? From the rumors I've been hearing, you have to tear the fabric of reality in order to get here! It's impossible, you coming here then! And the Guardian must be after you as well…"

"He is," said Mavis hurriedly, "which is why I must head towards the inner city. I'm going to find a way to defeat the Guardian, and when I do, I'll be able to find a way to return to the universe. At least hopefully." Jack scoffed, "you and your little dreams…" he murmured, "tell me, Mavis...do you really think that if you head towards the center of the city, you'll be able to defeat the Guardian, and everything else that guards the inner city? Do you truly believe that?"

Mavis hesitated. In all honesty, she didn't know. But it was her only course of action. "I do believe that," she replied, "that's why I'm going."

"Listen, Mavis," Jack leaned forward, "I'll be honest with you. Going towards the center of the city is suicide. There, the Guardian is most powerful. You think that fighting him was difficult in _Majoris_ , then you'll stand no chance here. In the _Majoris_ , the Guardian was out of his natural enviornment. Here, he has turf advantage. He outnumbers you. And he outclasses you. You should run, perhaps to a smaller city. That way, you'll be able to survive."

"You don't even know what I'm capable of," said Mavis bluntly, "listen...it's not your business what I do here. Point is, I need to get to the center of the city, whether or not it'll kill me. I would rather die than live a life of exile, not knowing what's going to happen next." Mavis waited, a little anxiously, for a response. Surprisingly, she saw Jack's eyes grow a little softer when she said these words.

"You may be crazy," said Jack, "but you have a good mindset. Alright, if you want to go and kill yourself at the center of the city, then be my guest. I'll bring you over to the tele-trains tonight. Alyssa, Mya, you two tend the house, make sure nobody else arrives. I'll be sending Mavis over in a few hours. Mavis, follow me...I want to show you something."

Mavis got up behind Jack. She was kind of confused. What was Jack going to show her? As Mavis walked behind Jack, out of the hut, around the hut, and into the back shed, Mavis watched as Jack opened the door to the shed, and clamber in, throwing random pieces of trash out of the way as he did so. Eventually, after a few moments, he reemerged, with a strange blue metal object in his hands. He gave it to Mavis, who turned it in her hands, staring at it.

"Now listen to me," said Jack in a whisper, "my species don't like the Guardian whatsoever. If what you're going to attempt is sincere, then bring this with you. If you somehow defeat the Guardian, press the button at the center of the beacon, and it'll send a signal to us telling us that you have defeated the Guardian. When that happens, we'll begin an invasion, wipe the city, and take it over. You can go and reenter the _Majoris_ , or whatever. Got it?"

Mavis slowly nodded, still staring at the beacon in her hands. She knew that this was a plot. Jack didn't actually care whether or not Mavis died. He only wanted power. Mavis made a mental note to never press the button if she could help it. But Jack didn't seem to see this. "Good," he said, "now lets go back to the hut so I can pack up for our little trip…"

In a few hours, after talking a little more to Alyssa and Mya, Mavis and Jack were ready. Jack turned back to Alyssa and Mya, waving, "I'll be back by nightfall," he said confidently, "If I'm not, then just tuck in and sleep. I should be back by tomorrow morning for certain." Mavis quickly took note of the certainty in his voice. It seemed as if he's been doing this for a long time by now. He was probably used to helping criminals and smugglers escape deeper into the inner city.

As Mavis and Jack began to make their way towards the tele-trains, going through a few streets and metal roads, Mavis quickly noted the seemingly endless amount of Murs that were walking around. There were some Murs that were resting in their huts, some that were working in their farms, and others that were laboring in their backyards. This species of aliens seemed to have a particular emphasis on hard work.

Eventually, the two of them began to walk along a lonely dirt road. To the sides, Mavis saw a few Murs, but they had grown less frequent. After a few minutes of walking through this particular road, Jack put his hands up, and Mavis immediately stopped moving. Jack leaned down, his hands feeling something in the dirt. He eventually grabbed hold of a lever, and pulled up, opening a hidden trapdoor in the ground.

"Come on," said Jack, "get in here…."

Mavis clambered through the trapdoor, climbing down into a narrow hallway. To the sides, dim lava lamps lit the hallway. There was nobody in here, apart from a few silent Murs who were playing some board game in the corner. Mavis followed Jack through the hallway, until it opened up into what looked unmistakably like a subway station, except there were no rails.

"Here we are." said Jack, "now we just gotta wait for that train to come-" before Jack could even finish the sentence, Mavis had vanished, reappearing right behind him, and pushing him down, right as a blade came out of nowhere, nearly severing his head. Mavis turned around, right in time to see a, very fortunately, _visible_ human draw back his energy blade. A dozen more humans appeared out of the shadows, their cloaks more advanced than what Mavis had anticipated.

Mavis was about to turn around, to run, when she saw the entrance get blocked off as well. In the corner, the Murs who were playing the board game had their necks slit. Behind Mavis, Jack scrambled back, drawing a short metal thing out of his pocket, and pressing a button on it. Instantly, the metal cylinder transformed into a six-foot war hammer. "Mavis, be careful," warned Jack, "these guys are from the Guardian...they must've known that you were here!"

Mavis already knew that much. She dodged two of the attacks, blocking the third one, and grabbing the human's blade, throwing it and beheading a fourth human. The rest of them were blasted back by telekinesis, getting slammed against the wall, but they all just got right back up. Mavis grimaced. These guys were tough.

The humans ran at Mavis again, and this time, Jack helped out. He slammed two of the humans back with his hammer, sending them flying backwards in a flash of red light. Mavis released a single telekinetic wave, killing three of the six humans that she was targeting. At the end of the subway tunnel, Mavis heard a female voice say, _Tele-train 19, incoming_.

The train was approaching. Mavis grabbed one of the humans, smashing his skull inside-out, then throwing another human against the wall. Right as the train arrived, however, Mavis heard a cry of pain behind her, and turned around right in time to see a human raise a blade right above a fallen Jack. Before the human could finish Jack off, however, Mavis had thrown him backwards, smashing him against the walls so hard that blood came out of his eyes.

One of the humans took advantage of this, and ran behind Mavis, stabbing her straight through the chest. This had little effect on Mavis. She turned around slowly, facing the human who had just stabbed her. "You think that does anything to me?" asked Mavis savagely, "get a bigger sword, _bitch_."

The human screamed, as he was blasted to dust by Mavis's powers. Behind Mavis, Jack had gotten back up, and was holding off two of the humans at the same time. In front of Mavis, the tele-train appeared in the hallway. The humans tried to block off the entrance, but Mavis quickly outspeeded them, teleporting into the train immediately.

Without really thinking of it, Mavis forced the train to go into teleportation. She vanished from sight completely.


	138. Hunt for the Guardian

The speed at which the train took off was slow. For instantaneous teleportation, it was pretty slow. The first thing Mavis felt, and she felt _really_ bad about this afterwards, was _thank goodness I wasn't trapped_. But then she remembered Jack, and the way he had helped her get into that tunnel, and had fought alongside her against the humans. Immediately, she felt bad for it. What has happened to Jack? Where was he now? Perhaps he was dead. Perhaps he was captured.

Mavis looked around on the train. Nobody was on it, thank goodness. The lights were dim, and there was a slight vibration on the ground, but only slight. All around her, thick black curtains had draped over the windows. To the side of the windows, the words, _Do not break drape: instant vaporization will occur_ , was printed on it. That couldn't be good. But it also served a benefit to Mavis. In teleportation, nobody could catch up to her...right?

Mavis sat down at one of the chairs, trying to think of where she was going to end up. She didn't even know where the tele-train was going. Jack had never told her where it went. Probably because he was paranoid, for a good reason. Above Mavis she heard the train creaking. Mavis clenched her fists. She hated a lack of speed. Speed was one of her specialties. Speed was the thing that gave her victory over her opponents nine out of ten times. But this...train...it was slow.

Incredibly slow.

A wave of nostalgia hit Mavis, as she remembered the times when travel by flight was her choice of transportation. Back then, flight was the fastest way. You could appear out of nowhere, drop on your enemies, and kill them easily. But now that Mavis was at her current level of power, she realized that speed was relative. Very relative. Mavis slapped herself. What was she thinking? This train was super fast. It travelled at the speed of instantaneous teleportation!

Before Mavis could think of anything else, however, there was a sudden jerk, as the entire train stopped moving. Mavis felt herself lifted off the ground, and phase through the walls, stumbling into an alleyway. As Mavis turned around, she saw the back of the train vanish through a teleportational opening. This was the end of the train ride. Mavis stood up, brushing herself off. It wasn't _too_ slow.

In front of Mavis, a tenth-dimensional hair salon stood in the lonely streets. To its sides was a hotel, and a brightly-lit casino, which had much noise and commotion going on inside of it. The street itself was empty, apart from a man in a trench coat, who was typing something onto his computer. Before Mavis could even comprehend what she was about to do, however, she heard a voice call out to her, "Hey, beauty!"

Mavis turned around, in time to see a young man, clearly drunk, stumble up to her. Behind him, a group of fellow men watched amusedly. The man who was stumbling towards Mavis tried to grab Mavis, but Mavis stepped out of the way, making him fall onto the pavement. One of the people in the group behind the man yelled out, "It isn't safe to be standing around all alone at night, Miss," he yelled, "perhaps I can _help_ you…you're probably just a whore anyways..."

That was it. Mavis vanished, reappearing in front of the man who said those words, grabbing him and slamming his face against the pavement so hard it dislocated both of his shoulders. The man screamed with pain, struggling. The other people backed up immediately. Mavis growled, her jaw clenched. She was in plenty of stress right now. She could do with letting some steam off.

As the man screamed in pain, Mavis lifted him off the ground completely, slowly forming telekinetic daggers, and cutting them into his skin, "tell me," she said in a deadly low tone, "where is the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator. NOW!" at the last word, Mavis broke all of the man's fingers with her telekinesis accidently. But she didn't care. People like this were the people she hated the most.

The man struggled to speak at all, "It's...it's a few miles away…" he gasped, "here...map...map…" he grabbed a map that was in his pocket, and dropped it onto the ground. Mavis dropped the man, leaving him in a crumpled heap on the ground, and picked up the map, opening it and looking at it. Sure enough, the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator was only about 19 miles away. Mavis felt a sense of danger run down her spine. She turned around, deflecting the knife attack that just came from one of the man's friends. She twisted the knife out of that person's hands, and embedded it into his left shoulder, making the knife go all the way through.

Before anyone else could even do anything, Mavis had blasted every last one of them back using telekinesis. "And next time," she yelled back to her defeated opponents, "I'll make the knife go through your neck, not your shoulder!" with that, Mavis ran off, vanishing from sight almost instantly.

As Mavis weaved her way through the many streets, she passed by dozens of crowds, most of which were occupied by wealthy-looking humans. There were also aliens here or there. Some of them were lower-class jobs, such as waiter, but there were also plenty of upper class aliens, such as clear government officials, or businessmen. Most of them looked as if they were just going on their regular business. But Mavis knew better.

This was a perfect place for an ambush.

As Mavis passed through the crowd, she felt several people glance at her. Hopefully, nobody would recognize her until she got out of the way safely. But of course, that wasn't how large crowds worked. Almost immediately, Mavis felt a group of wealthy-looking aristocrats cleave their way through the crowd towards her. Mavis acted as calmly as possible, turning to the aristocrats right as they got to her.

"What?" she asked, a little authoritatively. The aristocrats stopped, seemingly not used to being addressed this way. "My name is Gordo, and this is Alex," said the first aristocrat, pointing at his other buddy, "we want to see your ID, your card, and your confirmation code. Now." Mavis looked at the first aristocrat right in the eyes. He knew who she was. Crap.

"You sure about that?" asked Mavis. The first aristocraft blinked. "Um...yeah," he said, this time sounding a little fazed-out, "Yeah, of course I want all of that. Now hurry up." Mavis sighed. These guys were more durable against mind attacks than she had anticipated. They could actually resist them, unlike people from _Majoris_. She had to find some other way out of this.

The aristocrat began to grow impatient, "Hurry up!" he said, a little louder, "if you don't present ID forms, then I'll be reporting you to the Guardian himself! There's a woman who looks a whole lot like you that has a fat bounty on their head right now." Mavis knew that she had to do something. So she did the only thing she knew how to do. She attacked.

But she did a different form of attack this time. Instead of killing the aristocrat through brute force, she instead placed her hand on the aristocrat's face, and telekinetically tore every subatomic particle within his form apart, causing him to disappear instantly. Mavis's hand then shot out again, grabbing the second aristocrat, and was about to vanish him as well, when-

"IT'S MAVIS DRACULA!" yelled the second aristocrat. His pronouncement was so sudden, and so loud, that Mavis's concentration slipped. Rather than vanishing the aristocrat, he instead burst into ash. Mavis tried to hide it all, but by then, it was too late. There were screams, as the citizens around Mavis noticed her, and began to run away, yelling and screaming.

All around herself, Mavis felt danger. She ducked, avoiding a direct hit from a sniper who was watching from a roof above, but the bullet still went through her shoulder. Immediately, Mavis collapsed, breathing hard. This was a feeling that she had long forgotten. A feeling that she had assumed that impossible for her at this point. But apparently it wasn't. Mavis was feeling pain.

Mavis turned around, dodging a second sniper bullet, then vanishing, reappearing behind a wall. Already, her mind was going foggy. What type of bullet _was_ that? It clearly had something that prevented her healing abilities to kick in. But it also renewed something deep with Mavis, that she had thought that she had forgotten. It brought back the fear of battle. The fear of pain.

Mavis glanced out from behind the wall she was hiding behind, and was immediately met with another sniper shot, which she barely avoided. Mavis spotted the sniper, on top of a building nearby, and silently snapped her fingers. Immediately, the sniper had his neck snapped, but not before firing another shot. This time, Mavis saw the path of the sniper bullet. She saw the bullet, come out of the sniper's barrel, then vanish, travelling into the teleportational dimension, and reappearing right in front of her-

Mavis ducked, right as the bullet flew past her left ear, slamming into the wall behind her. She was about to go out from behind the wall, before she heard the sound of soldiers yelling orders. She cursed. The Guardian's men had arrived sooner than she had expected. Mavis's extrasensory perception quickly gave her a rundown of her situation at the moment.

Mavis was trapped behind a brick alleyway. In front of her, a line of advanced tanks created a solid barrier that the soldiers hid behind. Behind her, another line of tanks had also formed up. Soldiers had ran in with energy shields and heavy machine guns. They were advancing on Mavis's position. Above Mavis, an aerial vehicle had already spotted her, and was calling out information to the soldiers around Mavis, who were now closing in.

Mavis growled. She would make the first move. Without warning, she jumped out from behind the cover of the alleyway, jumping out into the open. Before the soldiers could fire, Mavis had jumped up, grabbing hold of the aerial vehicle, and had thrown the aerial vehicle out of the sky, slamming it into the ground in a massive explosion. The tanks immediately fired, opening up with machine gun fire and flak fire.

The area around Mavis was literally getting peppered with bullets. Mavis's telekinesis was able to dodge most of them, but a few seconds into it, Mavis felt a bullet teleport through her telekinetic barrier, and hit her on the hip. Mavis grunted, feeling the slightest amount of pain, before her healing powers activated she self-healed. It was then when Mavis noticed something.

On either sides of the street, there were buildings. Tall buildings. A plan began to form in Mavis's mind, as she endured the pain of taking a few more bullet hits. A few seconds later, Mavis yelled, bringing her hands down, and causing all the buildings to collapse on top of the soldiers who were just firing at Mavis in front of her. Immediately, the enemy forces vanished under a giant pile of stone and rubble.

But the other side was still alive. Behind Mavis, the back line of forces opened fire, sending heavy artillery shells bouncing around the street perilously and exploding with massive force. As the enemy forces drew nearer, Mavis began to do the same thing to them as she did for the other group of soldiers. The buildings on either side of the street began to crumble, falling down, and soon enough, they completely collapsed on the line of enemy soldiers.

But it wasn't enough. This time, the tanks were ready. Shields that were installed on the sides of them protected the soldiers from the debris, holding it up. Slowly but surely, the tanks began to make an advance on Mavis, who was now finding herself trapped between a pile of rubble, and a pile of rubble that had tanks and soldiers underneath it.

Well, there was only one way to solve this. Mavis concentrated. She had only done this once. But as she reached out with her telekinesis, she felt it. Another dimension. Mavis yelled a little, forcing the dimension open right on top of the line of enemy soldiers. She then shut the dimension, trapping the enemy soldiers in there.

Mavis turned, and blasted off towards the center of the city. Already, she heard more yelling and orders, as more soldiers came flocking towards the scene. Mavis didn't want to fight them anymore. She had more important things to attend to. And one of those important things was finding the Guardian.


	139. Surreal Vision

Mavis sprinted through the many streets and winding alleys. All around her, she could see soldiers and scouts looking for her. Right as Mavis turned around a corner of one of the streets, she saw a rift open up right in front of her, and a massive mech walk out of it. The mech immediately opened fire, sending missiles and mortars flying at Mavis's position. The only thing Mavis could do was fly back, right as the mortars hit where she just was.

Behind the mech that had just attacked, Mavis spotted two more mechs also walk out of the dimensional opening. Behind Mavis, two tanks teleported into view, firing their missile pods and spraying massive flamethrowers in all directions. If it wasn't for the fact that there was no cover, Mavis would've hid, but in this case, she had to take the offensive battle to her enemies.

Mavis vanished, appearing right on top of one of the mechs, grabbing its legs and ripping them clean off of the mech itself. Mavis felt jolts of pain, as bullets flew through her stomach and shoulders. Mavis formed a telekinetic barrier, blocking off yet another missile that flew at her from one of the tanks. These vehicles were much tougher than the ones in _Majoris_. These tanks were huge, and had shield generators, missile pods, and a triple-barrel rapid fire main cannon. They were actually kind of difficult to fight against.

As Mavis backed up against a wall, she saw in front of her a line of mechs, tanks, and helicopter-like aerial vehicles. They kept up a huge stream of firepower, going straight at her. Eventually, Mavis felt herself begin to slowly weaken, until she was forced to completely defend herself, and drop her offensive completely. She was able to do this quite easily, as her reaction time was off-the-charts.

But even so, Mavis realized her situation was the disadvantaged one. _She_ was the one defending. Eventually, she would tire out. As Mavis blocked another set of missiles that came flying at her, she felt a sense of danger run down her spine. She looked up, right as she felt a bullet teleport straight at her. Mavis's reaction saved her, forcing her entire body to drop her defense and roll out of the way, avoiding the sniper bullet that grazed her right cheek, and slammed into a wall nearby.

"Advance!" Mavis heard one of the commanders yell, "she's weakened! Go!" Mavis growled. While her shield was still up, Mavis opened up a black hole right behind the line of tanks and mechs. She had expected the black hole to destroy everything, but surprisingly, something held the surrounding environment together. A dozen mechs and tanks flew into the black hole, before one of the aerial vehicles shot something into the black hole, and the black hole collapsed, vanishing completely.

Mavis growled. These guys had impressive technology. Right as another missile flew at Mavis, she felt a chill run up her spine. She could cause a distraction. She could summon reinforcements. She could destroy all of these mechs with a push of a button. She just needed to push a button in her pocket. She just needed to activate the object that Jack had given her.

In Mavis's pocket, she felt the object weighing down on her. If she pressed it, would it send the message out to all the Murs, or only Jack? Jack was probably dead, or at best, sitting in a prison cell at the moment. If it only sent to Jack, then that would be of no help. But still, Mavis had to _try_. Pulling out the object from her pocket, Mavis was about to press the button on it, before a tank fired, forcing Mavis to form a shield instead, and making her drop the object.

Before Mavis could even do anything else, however, she felt a chill run up her spine. It was already too late. She was already dead. Mavis turned around, right in time to get greeted by a bullet that went straight through her chest. It was from a sniper. Immediately, Mavis collapsed. She could feel her telekinesis working within her, repairing her body as quickly as possible, but it wasn't enough.

Mavis's eyes silently became blurry….

* * *

"Mavis…"

Mavis's eyes opened up a little. She looked around. It was a sight she remembered. A sight she now cherished. She wished she could just stand here...all day. Stand here, in the shores of Paradise. Her home. Her _second_ home. The one place she felt partially safe in, even as the war waged around her. Now gone.

This was a dream, or a vision of some kind. Mavis knew this. Paradise was gone. Disintegrated by Cedron's fleet after he attacked Earth. As Mavis stood there, in the soft white sand, surrounded by the turquoise-blue water, and the shimmering reflection of the beach, she realized that there had to be a reason to this. She never got dreams or visions unless someone like her dad wanted to talk to her.

"Mavis, behind you."

Mavis turned around, staring at the person behind her. It was a relatively tall person. About six feet, one inch. He was wearing a trench coat, and had an asian-looking face. His eyes were large. Mavis hesitated for a moment, not wanting to go into anything too hastily. The last thing she needed was to anger someone powerful.

"Who are you?" she asked, confused.

The man in the trench coat grimaced a little. He pulled out a laptop, and turned it on. "I know you." he said, "I know everything about you. Every last detail. I know what will happen to you. I know what you will become. I know what you have the potential to become. But I choose what you do."

Mavis stepped back, "And what makes you say that?" she growled, a little defensively.

"Whatever," interrupted the man, "point is, I came here to tell you something. Something very important, actually."

Mavis waited. "Go on," she said, "what?" she knew by now that even strangers, if appearing in her dreams, was probably a credible source of information. That didn't mean that it would be beneficial, but she wanted to know either way.

The man took a glance at his computer screen, which Mavis saw was in google drive, "You are currently being hunted by the Guardian," said the man, "am I correct?"

Mavis nodded slowly.

"Good," said the man, "that means that you are in extreme peril, correct?"

Mavis sighed. She already hated this person. But even so, she nodded.

"Great," he said, "so...here...Mavis, tell you what…" the man pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket, and gave it to Mavis, "this'll be important," he said, "and also know something. If you want to use the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator, you have to break the laws of logic first."

Mavis glanced at the man, "I thought I've already done that." she said lamely, "what d'ya mean? I've traveled faster than instantaneous teleportation, right? That counts as breaking logic, right?"

The man huffed, "unimpressive," he grumbled, "give me something unique. The Cortexial Subspace Accelerator will require something unique. You're talking about level one logic breaking. I'm talking about level 2."

"What?" Mavis was even more confused now, "what's the difference?"

"Oh, you'll find out eventually." the man's response was even more infuriating.

"Listen," said Mavis impatiently, "if you're not gonna give me a straight answer, you might as well send me back to wherever I came from-"

"Such impudence!" the man sounded amused, "you don't appreciate what I'm trying to do? Hmph. Whatever."

The man gazed off towards the distance, which made Mavis even more infuriated. This guy looked like a troll, whoever he was.

"I'm sorry," stammered Mavis, "but what is the meaning of all of this?"

"Figure it out yourself," countered the man, "anyways, since you don't seem to appreciate what I'm trying to do, you won't be getting any more gifts from me. Cya."

Mavis's vision went black.


	140. Galactic Hero

Pain. Incredible, blinding pain. Pain so hard, and so severe, and so painstakingly bad that Mavis nearly threw up as soon as her brain came back into function. It felt as if her arms had turned into goo. She had never felt this much pain since her time back on Earth.

There were things running into Mavis's body. Tubes, that were injecting some sort of volatile black liquid into her. Even with her eyes closed, Mavis could feel it, coursing through her veins, making her arms go limp. Making her mind go blank. It took so much _effort_ , even to think now.

"Another injection might work."

Another surge of black liquid, going straight into Mavis's body, causing her to writhe in pain on the inside. From the outside, though, she looked dead. Her body was limp. She wasn't breathing. Her skin was even ice cold. But according to the computers, she was still alive.

How was Mavis still alive?

Mavis didn't know. All she knew was that she was on the brink of death. Infinitesimally close to dying. And yet not quite there yet. Mavis concentrating, forcing one of her eyes to slowly open. It was a painful process. One that required alot of effort to do.

As Mavis's eyes finally came into focus, she noticed the four people surrounding her, injecting random liquids and chemicals into her. They were trying to kill her, Mavis knew that, but somehow it wasn't working. The people were too busy with their work to notice Mavis, who was now watching them tiredly.

Mavis breathed deeply, closing her eyes again. She knew that she needed to escape. She knew that escape was imperative for her. But at this same time, she really didn't want to move. Death felt so... _tiring_. Almost like sleeping.

 _Concentrate_ ….

Mavis tried to concentrate, but for the first time, it was difficult. Slowly, she felt her telekinesis come to life within her. Mavis concentrated even harder, trying to do something with it. This time, she was able to make a window in one corner of the room shatter. One of the doctors in the room looked over, his eyebrow raised. This was it.

 _CONCENTRATE_

Immediately, the entire operating table that Mavis was on exploded, sending twisted pieces of metal flying everywhere. The doctors were blown backwards. The entire building shook, as the force of the telekinetic blast flew through it. Mavis herself was thrown out of the table by the force of her own blast, and when she stood up, she immediately felt a wave of vertigo sweep through her. Whatever chemicals those doctors were trying to kill her with, they had come really close.

But at the moment, she had more worrying things to address. On the other side of the operating room, the doors burst open, and soldiers came running through. Mavis stumbled behind her operating table to prevent herself from being shot, and flicked her fingers, blasting the entire squadron of soldiers to dust with her telekinesis.

"Stop her!" a dozen more soldiers filed into the room, firing their weapons. Mavis felt a laser bolt fly through her stomach, but her body healed instantly. By now, Mavis could feel the effects of the volatile chemicals that were injected into her slowly begin to fade away. They were beginning to heal. Her body was starting to fight back, now that she wasn't connected to those tubes.

Phase troopers teleported into the room, using their suits to jump through inter-teleportative dimensions, and appear right in front of Mavis. They drew swords and attacked, but Mavis was ready for them. Months of combat and fighting had prepared Mavis for this type of fighting. She intercepted the first attacker's arm, twisting it back and breaking it, then throwing him at the second attacker. The third and fourth were blasted back by her telekinesis. The fifth attacker ran in, driving the sword at Mavis in a stabbing position. Mavis ducked, avoiding the blade, slid over to the attacker, grabbing his neck, and throwing him against the ground with so much force that his suit cracked open.

Mavis didn't bother to congratulate herself. She sprinted through the open doors, the chemicals still making her slightly dizzy. Her eyes glowed, as her extrasensory perception finally kicked in. She was in the center of the city, meaning she was right where the cortexial subspace accelerator was. Mavis smiled, through the pain of the chemicals. The Guardian had brought her closer to her goal.

On the other side of the hallway, the doors burst open yet again, but this time, Mavis was ready. She opened a trap dimension behind the soldiers, trapping the soldiers in the dimension, then closed it. Right as Mavis ran through that door, however, she was greeted with the sight of three entire squadrons of soldiers, that were facing her with their weapons raised. This time, Mavis saw mechs that looked more advanced than anything she had seen beforehand, and also spotted snipers that were behind the soldiers, or hanging from the ceiling by cables.

But what really got Mavis's attention was the door behind the line of soldiers. The door, which had the label _Cortexial Subspace Accelerator_ printed onto it. It was the thing that she needed to get the Guardian's attention. But at the same time, Mavis didn't know if she was fit to fight the Guardian.

Mavis grit her teeth. This was one of the only chances she would have to capture the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator. She was going to take it. Without warning, Mavis blasted off, ripping through the squadron of soldiers in the blink of an eye, and was about to reach the door, when one of the mechs teleported in front of her. This caught Mavis off guard, but she was able to stop herself before she collided with the mech. The mech fired, launching missiles and raining teleporting bullets on her.

Mavis vanished, dodging all the bullets, and ran behind the Mech, punching it so hard it flew into a different dimension. The rest of the soldiers opened fire, and this time, Mavis received all of the hits. There were so many bullets, Mavis's body was torn to shreds, but it reformed just as quickly. She flicked her hands, and the soldiers were swept aside, flying in all directions.

Mavis blasted open the door, running inside. Behind the door, was a massive spherical room. Four bridges connected four doors at each end of the sphere to the center, in which there was a bright glowing ball of golden material. Mavis knew where to go immediately. She ran towards the center, accelerating to teleportation, and appeared right in front of it. There, Mavis saw that the Cortexial Subspace Accelerator was much more intricate than what it appeared as. It had computers, wires, and screens running all around it. In the center, Mavis saw a tiny glowing crystal. Wisps of light were coming out of it. With a chill, Mavis realized that this crystal was the power source of the accelerator.

Behind Mavis, an entire squadron of soldiers teleported into view, along with mechs and tanks, forming ranks on the bridge, their weapons facing Mavis. None of them fired their weapons, and Mavis was about to wonder why, when she realized that the soldiers probably weren't willing to risk harming this accelerator.

No matter, Mavis didn't really care. She punched through the screens and computers, reaching in, and grabbed the golden crystal, clutching it in her hands. There was a spout of murmuring from the ranks of the soldiers, but they still didn't fire their weapons. Mavis held up the crystal in front of her enemies, slowly spinning it.

"Anyone who fires will be responsible for the destruction of this!" she tauntingly yelled, "so anyone who wants to take that chance, do it!"

There was silence. Nobody fired. Mavis saw several snipers clamber onto the ceiling, and other snipers take position behind the ranks of the infantry, or behind the mechs. She growled. She wouldn't be able to hold out these guys forever. She had to find some other way to escape this scenario.

"Drop the Crystal." A chill ran down Mavis's spine, mainly because that voice came from the one person she kind of feared. On the other side of the room, the doors slid open, and the guardian drifted through. Mavis's features hardened. She clutched the crystal even harder. This was her one bargaining chip. The one thing preventing her from getting swamped by soldiers.

"Why should I?" Mavis yelled back, "you have nothing that I want, Guardian!"

The guardian drifted forward, a light blue aura surrounding his form. His face looked like clear glass, as usual. "Actually," he murmured, "I do."

Mavis watched nervously, as the guardian reached into his pocket, and produced out of it another crystal, except this one was dark blue. "This," he said delicately, "is the entire galaxy that your precious Johnny is on at the moment. I can smash it, right now. I can destroy it. And if I do, the entire galaxy will die with it. Along with Johnny."

Mavis paused. She grit her teeth. The Guardian wasn't someone who would lie, but at the same time, she knew that if she did give the Guardian what he wanted, he wasn't likely to uphold his part of the deal. But at the same time, Johnny was her first priority. Her only priority…

Straightening her back, Mavis looked at the Guardian, right in the face, "Fine," she growled, "deal."

Mavis threw the golden crystal at the guardian, which the guardian caught in his hands. The Guardian did exactly what Mavis suspected. He sighed, "Too bad, Mavis…you shouldn't have trusted me."

Then he dropped the blue crystal.

Instantly, Mavis vanished, reappearing right in front of the crystal before it hit the ground. But before she could reach down to grab it, the Guardian had teleported back, and had telekinetically shattered the crystal.

Instantly, a massive roar of sound, as the crystal erupted into a whirlwind of color and light in front of Mavis. Temperatures spiked up to several quadrillion degrees. The force of the crystal shattering was enough to kill everyone else in the room apart from Mavis and the Guardian. Mavis could feel the crystal's essence, every particle of it, being scattered in all different directions.

"NO."

Mavis's hands came down, slamming into the ground, forcing all of the particles of the crystal back together. She slowly began to condense the shattered crystal back into a whole one. It was like trying to place two very powerful magnets of equal charge together. Mavis gasped, as the shards dissolved, and soon enough, she was clutching a ball of light in her hands, still keeping it all together.

Mavis was holding a galaxy together.

 _Concentrate_.

Slowly, Mavis's telekinesis came in touch, mending the particles back together, realigning the planetary orbits, until the crystal had reformed in her hands.

Mavis collapsed, breathing hard. The Guardian had left the room by now, probably under the belief that she wouldn't be able to hold the galaxy together. But she did. Mavis had just saved an entire galactic ecosystem.


	141. Restored Hope

Mavis, still clutching the reformed galactic crystal in her hand, shoved it into her pocket, and turned, running. The entire room was empty by now, most of the soldiers evacuating under the belief that the crystal would destroy them. Mavis didn't bother with trying to slip out silently. These guys just nearly killed Johnny. She wasn't about to let them get away with that.

With a yell, Mavis blasted open the back door, sending it flying off its hinges. She flew through the hole where the door just was, going too fast for the soldiers to see her. Mavis immediately recognized the room as a hangar bay of some kind. There were fighters and bombers docked here and there. A battalion of soldiers who were just facing Mavis had stopped here to rest. They certainly didn't expect her to survive either, judging by the fact that most of them had their guns laying on the ground.

Mavis landed on the ground, releasing a telekinetic shockwave that blasted every soldier in the room to dust. Immediately, alarms began to blare again. Red lights started to flash in the room. Mavis dissipated into purple mist right as the first mech teleported into the room. She flew around the mechs, rematerializing on top of one of them, and slamming the mech into the ground so hard that it resembled a pancake.

The other mech opened fire, releasing a hailstorm of teleporting gunfire, and shooting homing missiles at Mavis. Before the missiles could hit Mavis, Mavis had opened a dimensional gateway, sucking in all the missiles, then reopened the dimensional gateway behind the mechs, forcing the missiles through the portal, and causing the entire mech to explode.

It was then when Mavis felt a chill run down her spine. She ducked, avoiding the energy blade that flew right through where her neck just was, as three familiar guards teleported right behind her. Mavis immediately recognized them as the same ones that she had trapped in an alternate dimension, and smirked at them. She vanished, reappearing behind one of the guards, and slammed his face into the wall. The second guard activated an energy pike, and attacked Mavis, forcing her back temporarily.

As Mavis backed up, she quickly took note of the fact that more soldiers were pouring into the room. She cursed. She had to finish off these stupid guards before the soldiers got too prevalent. Not wasting any time, Mavis ducked, reaching up and grabbing one of the guards by the neck. She killed that guard, then dodged another attack from the third guard, who teleported in behind her. Mavis accelerated to 600 teletorts, appearing behind the third guard and snapping his neck.

Before Mavis could even congratulate herself, however, the soldiers opened fire, sending a wave of bullets flying at her. She sighed, vanishing into teleportation yet again. This was going to be an awfully drawn-out battle.

* * *

"Johnny!" Johnny turned around, right as Josiah came running out of the building near him. He was clutching a notebook in his hands, which made Johnny excited. Josiah had never said anything to him since a few days ago, when Mavis had vanished. By this time, Johnny was slowly deteriorating, and everyone could see that. His eyes carried a weight of hopelessness, and there were bags under his eyes now.

"What is it?" asked Johnny, pretending not to be surprised.

Josiah caught up to Johnny, panting a little. He opened up the notebook, giving it to Johnny to look at, "I think I know where Mavis went," he said excitedly, "I think she's exited the universe through an interdimensional teleportative pathway."

"What does that mean?" Johnny looked at Josiah a little wearily. Even he knew that this was something surprising, even coming from Josiah. "What's an interdimensional teleportative pathway?"

"It's exactly what it sounds like," said Josiah, looking a little offended at the lack of technical knowledge, "it's a tear through the fabric of reality, which would create a portal that would accelerate the objects within it to several times the speed of instantaneous teleportation. It would lead the things in it to somewhere out of the universe."

Johnny was silent for a few moments, "Does anything exist out of the universe though?" his voice was riddled with bitterness, "how are we sure that Mavis isn't dead….or worse? For all we know, there might just be nothing out of the universe."

Josiah shook his head, "The point is," he said, "Mavis _went_ somewhere. She didn't vaporize. She didn't dissipate. She actually _went_ somewhere. If anyone in the universe has the strength to resist something like getting forced through an interdimensional portal, then Mavis is that person."

Johnny slowly nodded. He knew that Josiah was right. If Mavis _could_ survive the portal, then she _would_ survive it. But the real question was, was surviving really an option? Could Mavis survive the trip? Johnny stood up, "Call in a meeting with the rest of the marketers," he said, a little impatiently, "We need to start rebuilding this city."

It was true. The entire city was still kind of scratched up from the battle. Yeah, Mavis's telekinetic protections did shield the majority of the city from the battle, but some of the buildings at the edge were still crumbling. Most of the marketers had fixed it up as best as they could, but the lack of raw materials was really getting to them.

Josiah nodded, glad that Johnny was finally beginning to make decisive moves now that he had told him what he knew. He turned from Johnny, walking through the streets. His instincts told him that maybe, he had just restored Johnny's faith in Mavis. Just a little.

* * *

Mavis glanced around the corner, her extrasensory perception giving her a full-scale report of the area around her. There were 1,237 soldiers within a one mile radius of her, most of them searching for her. When the soldiers had attacked Mavis, she had dissipated into mist, going into the ventilation systems and rematerializing in a far-off closet. She had then proceeded to hiding in a bathroom, which was probably something that she should change.

As her extrasensory perception scanned the area, Mavis took note of a map that was pinned on a wall a few hundred feet down the hallway. She immediately scanned the map, locating several rooms. The room that she and the guardian had exchanged words in was the Subspace Acceleration Containment Room. The room that she fled from the soldiers in was apparently a Hangar Bay. There were several smaller rooms, such as medical bays, bathrooms, and barracks, but the one that stood out the most to Mavis was the Artifact Hall, which was on the other side of the building.

Mavis's eyes glowed with excitement when her eyes landed on those words. _Artifact Hall_. She had no leads right now. No way of returning to her universe. No way of breaking free of this extra-universal realm. She was essentially stuck here. If there was anything that would break her out, it would be in the Artifact Hall. And from the way that the Artifact Hall had triple grade security, it was pretty important as well.

Mavis made her move immediately. She silently dissipated into mist, seeping into the ventilation systems again, and flying through them. Immediately, she realized that this was a mistake. The alarms started blaring yet again. A weird sensation ran down Mavis's spine, and she was suddenly forced out of the ventilation system, rematerializing into her vampire form. All around her, she heard the sounds of soldiers and mechs teleporting into the hallway.

There was a mech directly in front of her. Behind Mavis, a dozen soldiers teleported in. Without hesitation, Mavis flicked her fingers, causing all the soldiers and mechs to crumble to dust. Another mech teleported in front of Mavis, but Mavis easily threw it against the wall like a rag doll, crushing it like a tin can. In front of Mavis, she noticed a sniper at the end of the hallway fire his sniper, the bullet flying at Mavis at 900 teletorts.

Mavis ducked, allowing the bullet to fly past her head, then turned around, flicking her finger, and using subatomic manipulation to turn the bullet into a solid wall, which blocked off the hallway behind Mavis, effectively getting rid of the soldiers who were teleporting in behind her. Mavis sprinted over to the sniper, grabbing him, and killing him instantly.

According to her extrasensory perception, the quickest way of getting to the artifact hall was to turn 98 degrees to the right, and go straight through the walls. So that's exactly what Mavis did. Without putting in much effort, Mavis drew back her fist, and smashed a hole through the wall, sending fragments of metal flying everywhere.

"Get her!"

A weird spider mech teleported in behind Mavis, firing a sticky wad of elastic string out of its head, and wrapping it around Mavis. Mavis growled, dissipating into mist, and rematerializing. She smashed the spider mech easily, then jumped into teleportation, phasing through the walls, and appearing in the room right in front of the artifact hall. Surprisingly, there were no guards there initially, which was quickly changed once Mavis appeared. Mechs, tanks, and soldiers began to teleport in immediately. Mavis sensed a barrier appear in front of the artifact hall doors. A barrier that she couldn't teleport through.

"Hold her down! He's coming!"

Missiles, bullets, flame, plasma, dark matter, red matter, and singularity bullets all came flying at Mavis simultaneously. Her instincts took over, and the next thing she knew, she was flying through the ranks of the enemy soldiers, killing each one. After disintegrating the lead tank, she jumped out in front of the artifact hall doors, and flicked her fingers, disintegrating all 1,437 soldiers and mechs that were present.

Mavis turned, her fist drawn back. She punched the barrier that was separating her from the artifact hall, cracking it. A second punch caused that crack to grow, and a third punch shattered the entire thing. Mavis ran through, phasing through the doors of the artifact hall. Immediately, she was greeted with something that frightened her very much.

Silence.

Ear-splitting, deadening silence.

The entire place was so quiet, that every footstep from Mavis resonated like an echo in the grand canyon. She walked briskly across the lobby of the artifact hall, making her way to a list of artifacts that was posted on the other side of the room. Her eyes began to read down the list, scanning the artifacts that she could potentially use to return to her universe.

Staff of Abominations….Talisman of Hyier….Orb of Chaos….Scepter of the Cosmos….

Wait. Scepter of the Cosmos?

Mavis looked at where the Scepter could be found, and right next to it, was the number 239.

Mavis's extrasensory perception kicked in, locating artifact #239 in the massive hall of artifacts. She eventually found it, a few hundred meters away from where she was. Immediately, Mavis dissipated into mist, and reformed right next to the scepter. It was being held on a wooden stand. The scepter itself had a silver head, which had a strange swirly symbol carved onto it. The handle was made of wood. Mavis gripped the scepter, and immediately felt its power. With a little fright, Mavis realized the power that was emanating from the room. The raw power contained within this one room was enough power to literally disintegrate any normal person who entered it.

"You dare…"

Mavis jumped, as she turned around. A figure appeared in front of her, materializing out of grey mist that accumulated in front of her. His head was hidden beneath a cloak, and he floated off the ground, his cloak seemingly vanishing into air at its edges. The figure pointed at Mavis, "You," he hissed, "are an intruder. Prepare to die."


	142. Unlikely Guidance

Mavis's instincts immediately took over. Without warning, she backed up, and jumped, doing a backflip, and landing a few hundred feet behind where she just was. When she looked up, the figure that was just talking to her had vanished. Mavis slowly backed up, raising her hands. Her extrasensory perception was scanning the area around her, and was giving her nothing.

Suddenly, Mavis felt a jolt of energy run down her spine. She immediately ducked, avoiding the sword that had just flew out of nowhere, and straight at her. She instinctively turned around, blasting the area where the sword had came from with telekinetic energy. Her blast was deflected, and Mavis was thrown back. She scrambled back up, in her hands still clutching the Scepter of the Cosmos.

The figure came flying at Mavis, forcing her back onto her feet. Mavis's fist came back, and when the figure came into range, she threw a punch at it. Right before her fist connected with the figure, however, the figure vanished, melting into nothingness, and reappeared a few meters behind Mavis. Mavis's punch sent a shockwave flying through the artifact hall, which slammed into a wooden stand, snapping it, and causing a fragile-looking glass ball to fall to the ground.

"You have just destroyed an artifact!" yelled the figure, "you are a _thief!_ " he flew forward yet again, this time splitting into fourteen different copies of himself. The copies surrounded Mavis, and slowly closed in. Mavis flicked her fingers, and all of them were thrown back, slamming against shelves, smashing artifacts, and shattering orbs. Most of the copies vanished. All except….one.

Before Mavis could even rush him, the figure had flew back up, grabbing a sword from one of the artifact stands. It lunged at Mavis, throwing attacks at her from all directions. The blade itself left a streak of black behind wherever it was in air. Mavis took particular caution to not touch these black lines. As the attacks grew more pressed, Mavis turned around, using her telekinesis to collapse an entire shelf of ancient-looking books on top of the figure.

The shelves came crashing down, but before they could land on the figure, the figure had sprung upwards, flying through the shelves, and had rematerialized again in front of Mavis. In a defensive move, Mavis threw the figure back with telekinesis. Before he hit the ground, however, he stopped himself, and came flying back, more prevalent than ever.

Mavis glanced around. She spotted a fragile looking purple orb a few feet away from her. Mavis telekinetically grabbed the orb, and then turned around, throwing it as hard as she could against the figure, hoping for the best. The orb slammed into the figure's face, initially causing pain, but that pain was soon replaced by anger as the figure was suddenly trapped in a huge crystal.

The figure roared, struggling against his new captor, but it was no use. The crystal was strong, even Mavis could feel it. Without trying to wait to talk, Mavis turned and blasted a hole in the side of the artifact hall. As she was doing this, she sucked as many books and artifacts as she could towards herself, and forced them into a separate dimension. A place where she could access them later, if needed.

Mavis flew through the hole that she had created, flying back into the room that led into the artifact hall. In that room, there were lines of soldiers waiting, who all opened fire as soon as Mavis came into view. The power that was contained within the artifact hall must've been preventing them from getting in. Sure enough, Mavis took note that the soldiers closest to the artifact hall looked particularly woozy.

As the soldiers opened fire, Mavis dissipated into mist, flying through the crowd of soldiers, until she was at the exit of the room. Rematerializing into her vampire form, Mavis blasted a hole right through the room, and ran outside. There were already dozens of mechs that were also stationed outside, so Mavis didn't exactly get any time to congratulate herself. She snapped her fingers, and the entire legion of mechs burst into dust.

Mavis ran through the heaps and piles of dust, and accelerated to 990 teletorts, effectively jumping out of view. Behind her, the soldiers and mechs quickly vanished, and the city quickly melted away, until Mavis was flying through the dense metal that made up the city's base. But by this time, Mavis was starting to feel pain. The black liquid that was injected into her a few hours ago was starting to take heavy effect again. She slowly began to feel her eyes close…

Mavis's eyes snapped open, and she immediately flung herself off the ground, floating a little in the air. Her stomach was slightly cramped, and her mouth had a sour taste in it, but apart from that, the poison that the doctors were trying to inject into her had definitely worn off by now. It was then when Mavis noticed where she was.

She was floating in the middle of what looked like the plainest, most blank place in the entire multiverse. The ground was made up of white shining metal, with nothing in sight for miles around. Mavis must've been very far away from the city, because her extrasensory perception was even incapable of finding anything nearby.

Mavis frowned. She dropped back onto the ground again, and sat down. The metal was neither warm nor cold, but was definitely a strong material. If Mavis's extrasensory perception was correct, this metal is what surrounded her universe. Mavis got up, raising her fist, and smashing it into the ground as hard as she possibly could. The blast was enormous. A mushroom cloud fifteen light years across formed over Mavis. But when the dust cleared, the metal was still unscathed.

Mavis plopped back down onto the ground. She knew that punching the metal probably wouldn't work. But something might help her escape this place...the Scepter of the Cosmos.

Mavis waved her hands, and the dimensional storage that Mavis had kept all of her artifacts in appeared. Mavis reached in, and pulled out the scepter. Now came the hard part. How was she supposed to actually _use_ this thing?

As Mavis began to fiddle with the scepter, she slowly began to realize how futile her attempts may be. What if the scepter of the Cosmos didn't actually help her escape? What if it did something else? The possibilities were endless...but Mavis still had to try, no matter what. She paced the area she was in, tapping the scepter against the ground, pressing its handle, talking to it, even _breathing_ on it. Nothing happened.

As the seconds dragged onto minutes, which dragged onto hours, Mavis slowly began to become impatient. The metal flat that surrounded her, and the deadening silence didn't exactly help either. After about an hour of tinkering with the scepter without avail, Mavis finally yelled out with frustration, slamming the scepter against the white metal ground.

 _Crack_.

At first, Mavis didn't realize it, but after a few seconds, her eyes narrowed, and she looked down underneath her. There was a crack in the metal ground.

Mavis stared at the crack. This scepter was able to break the metal? Maybe that was how she was going to escape this place then. Mavis raised the scepter again, and this time, slammed it down with as much force as she could possibly exert from herself. This time, the crack widened a little, and the dent itself was driven about a foot deeper into the metal.

Well, Mavis was making progress.

Raising the scepter again, Mavis struck the ground one, two, three, four, five, six times. Each time she hit the ground, the dent grew even deeper, until Mavis was standing in a practical hole, about nine feet deep in the metal. According to her extrasensory perception, however, she still had-

"Nine hundred light years thick?" Mavis blurted aloud, as her extrasensory perception gave her the logistics. It was beyond unreasonable. It was outrageous. It was cruel and unusual. Mavis roared with frustration, slamming the stupid scepter against the ground again, deepening the hole by three inches.

 _Stop crying, dangit._

Mavis jumped. The voice came from inside her head, which immediately made her think that the Guardian was nearby. Instinctively, she released an atomic explosion around herself. But she still sensed the presence in her head afterwards. This presence was different from the Guardian's presence. It was...more benign.

"What….who is this?" asked Mavis out loud, "who are you?"

 _You've already forgotten me, huh?_ The voice was sarcastic and slightly annoying, but it also sounded familiar. Mavis frowned. Where did it come from? _I can just leave you here to sit here and slam a stick against the ground over and over again. Or I can give you some partially helpful advice, you know…_

Mavis sighed. "How do I get back to my universe?" she asked, a note of bitterness to her voice, "I just want to return to Johnny...and Josiah...and my friends."

 _Such loyalty_. The voice chuckled a little in Mavis's head, which made her slightly annoyed, _don't worry Mavis, if you follow exactly what I tell you, you'll be able to return to your friends. But listen carefully…this information will be crucial to your little...ah...detour._

"What information?" asked Mavis, looking around her, even though she knew that she would find nobody nearby, "what do you need to tell me?"

 _Your scepter happens to be made of Orlyx, which is the only material stronger than what the ground is made of. Unfortunately, you're using the Scepter of the Cosmos to break through the ground, which is not what its meant for. You need to get an Orlyx drill. That way, you can easily break through the crust. With your strength, it should take no time whatsoever. Oh, and I see that you haven't tried teleporting out. That's good, because if you did try teleporting out of this place, then you would just get forced back._

All this information came crashing down on Mavis at the same time, and it was alot to swallow. The main part Mavis needed was the part about capturing the Orlyx Drill. She immediately got up, "Thanks for the info," she muttered, "I'll be off now."

 _Oh, you will be off_ , chuckled the voice. With that, Mavis jumped into teleportation at 990 teletorts, heading straight back to the city, to find an Orlyx Drill.

* * *

Johnny flew above the city, yelling orders at his men. By now, the city that they had attacked was dead in terms of defenses. The civilians were being herded up, and their soldiers were being executed without any exceptions. Johnny suddenly spotted a tank that was still firing at his men, and flew down, burning through the tank with so much electricity, that it caused the metal itself to melt.

"Josiah!" Johnny called Josiah over, "you said that this place has a cloning facility?" he asked, "where is it?"

Josiah opened up his notebook, going to an aerial map that he had of the city, and pointed towards the northern region, "It's up there," he said, "but the northern regions are still active with the city's defenders. Our men have already tried pushing through, and they were forced back!"

Johnny closed the notebook magnetically, "that's only because I wasn't leading them," he said gruffly, "Josiah, send a message to whoever's fighting the Northern defenses to pull back. I'm going in."

Josiah looked a little scared. He nodded, a little frantically, and took out his walkie talkie, signalling to the third regiment to pull back from the battle. With that, Johnny took off from his position, flying towards the Northern side of the city, and rocketing downwards. He immediately took note of the thirteen energy machine guns nests that were stationed there, as well as a dozen spider mechs, and half a dozen heavy tanks. The main problem, however, was a Juggernaut-class tank that was holding back all of the soldiers.

Johnny slammed into the Juggernaut Tank, electrocuting it with several trillion gigavolts, and then rolled over the side of it, shooting out lightning from his hands, and killing everyone within close proximity. He grabbed the Juggernaut tank magnetically, lifted it off the ground, and threw it at the main defenses, causing all of the enemy soldiers to go down with a deadly crunch.

"Josiah!" Johnny took out his walkie talkie and send a message to Josiah, "get to my position, and find that cloning facility." a sly smile began to spread on his face, "we'll have an army soon."


	143. HISTORY - Expanded Universe

**So this is going to be the Expanded Universe Page for my story. It's going to be for the background history of the galaxy before Mavis was born.**

* * *

Year ZERO

Humanity is born on the planet of Exar-9, in the far outer regions of the Milky Way.

* * *

As Humanity progresses, they begin to slowly develop new technologies that allow for intergalactic travel and communication. The humans who decide to colonize nearby star systems soon split into two political factions: the Federation of Allied Systems, and the Republic. The Republic claim Exar-9 as their sovereign territory.

* * *

The first major galactic war breaks out, between the Federation and the Republic. The Republic makes use of a superweapon known as the Subspace Mass Accelerator, which effectively destroys a major Federation Star System. The Federation responds by launching a large-scale naval invasion of the Republic homeworld, forcing the Republic back onto defense.

* * *

A group of explorers, known as the Azban Crew, come across the star system of Lyrra-4, and get attacked by an intelligient species. Out of the 14 ships that were originally in the exploration fleet, only 1 returns, with half of its crew dead. The Republic utilize their Subspace Mass Accelerator yet again, this time in order to destroy the main Federation Trade planet, crippling the Federation's economy. The Federation still refuse to surrender, and continue their campaign on the Republic Front.

* * *

The species that the Azban Crew had discovered (The Griev) comes out of hiding, seeing the war between the humans as an opportunity. They attack both sides, effectively destroying the Federation, and capturing 13 star systems from the Republic, before they were able to effectively organize a counterattack. The Subspace Mass Accelerator is destroyed in the Battle of Lorain, which is one of the battles that was fought during this time period between the Republic and the Griev.

* * *

After 300 years of fighting, the Griev and the Republic finally settle on a peace treaty, that officially recognizes Griev sovereignty in the galaxy, and calls for both sides to reduce armaments. The Griev at this point are also tired of fighting, and even open up trade with the humans, allowing for the first true political ties to begin to form between the two factions. Within the humans, a group of magic-wielders calling themselves the Yeelan Order emerge. Its leader, Irsh, senses a dark force within the galaxy that he cannot pinpoint.

* * *

After political squabbles between the many smaller political factions of the Republic, the Republic decides to banish the Yeelan Order. The Yeelan Order relocated to a faraway planet (Mustar-3) in the border of the Unknown Regions, and lay there, dormant. The Griev begin recreating their army, raising alarm in the Republic, and causing the Republic to make a call for rearmament as well. A dense cold war settles in, with both sides scrambling to create more weapons then the other. The Republic create the Havocor, a superweapon that is capable of wiping entire star systems off the map, while the Griev begin to mass-produce _Destructor_ Class Warships, which are each the size of new york city. In Mustar-3, the Yeelan Order locates the source of the dark force, and pinpoints it to a cluster of wormholes in the far Unknown Regions.

* * *

The Yeelan split apart, into Seekers and Warriors. The Seekers are those within the ranks of the Yeelan who prize the intellect of magic more, while the Warriors are those who prize the strength that magic gives more. The Yeelan Civil War begins, which quickly renders the planet of Mustar-3 uninhabitable. The Seekers technically win the war, but with huge casualties. Both sides relocate to different planets, with the Seekers retreating to the planet of Irri, and the Warriors beginning an assault on the Griev Star Systems, in an attempt to take their land for themselves. The Warriors are easily defeated within a week, and are mostly killed. The survivors are scattered across the galaxy. During this time period, an ambitious Seeker by the name of Galen Urix takes charge of the seekers, and begins planetary expansion into neighbouring systems.

* * *

After 1,000 years of relative peace, the Seekers discover a new species, the Cyrdians. The Cyrdians at first welcomed the Seekers, but quickly grew suspicious of their use of magic. Sure enough, two months after initial contact, the Cyrdians begin stockpiling weapons and begin to raise an army in case of an attack from the Seekers. The Republic and the Griev find out about the Cyrdians, and both of them begin diplomatic talks with the Cyrdians. However, a terrorist from the Republic by the name of Jurich Maix cuts these diplomatic talks short after he bombed the Cyrdian capital. The Cyrdians immediately responded, using their armaments to initiate an attack on the Republic, and forcing both sides into a dense war. The Seekers continue diplomatic talks with the Cyrdians, but the suspicious Cyrdian political officials prevent any true diplomacy between the two factions.

* * *

The Battle of Gastuv-2 happens, and is marked as the most costly battle that has happened so far, with over 17 million soldiers perishing during the single battle. The Republic try to begin peace talks again, but the Cyrdians continue the war, eventually driving the Republic back to their original star system. There, the Republic vow to never surrender to the Cyrdians, and begin a desperate defensive that would last for over a thousand years. The Warriors return to power, its leader, Boros, taking control of the planet of Irri from the Seekers, who are forced to relocate to yet another planet.

* * *

The Cyrdians finally sign a peace treaty with the Republic, after over a thousand years of deadlocked battle. The warriors and the Seekers also sign a peace treaty, but neither side truly wants to uphold their end of the deal. Eventually, fighting breaks out yet again, this time the Seekers being nearly wiped out in the Battle of Malaki.

* * *

After 2,000 years of relative peace, the leader of the Seekers, Norik, and the leader of the Warriors, Amona, marry each other in an attempt to finalize a lasting peace between the two faction. The marriage works, and the Warriors and Seekers are finally brought together. However, around this time, the planet of Exar-9 is destroyed by an unknown force. Devastated both economically and politically, the Republic is forced to relocate, but by that time, it had already splintered into several groups of rogue factions. This was due mainly to the fact that most of the higher-up politicians and government leaders lived on Exar-9. The Republic Civil War breaks out, and the Griev decide to take advantage of the chaos to gain territory for itself.

* * *

The Griev finally take control over all of the former Republic. By now, the Griev are also making plans to invade the Seekers and Warriors, who at this point in time, are living in relative peace, thanks to the marriage of the two faction leaders. Norik and Amona have a child, Dura, who is a female human who chooses to join the Seekers. However, after researching the subject herself, Dura concludes that the Seekers and Warriors should reunite completely into a single faction. Her proposal is met with extreme backlash, as the majority of the Seekers and Warriors wished to remain separate.

* * *

The griev declare war on the Seekers and Warriors, forcing them into a war, and wiping out the majority of them. Dura is able to survive, escaping her home planet to the unknown regions. Norik and Amona are both killed while fighting to let her escape.

* * *

After 500 years of meditation, concentration, and self-training on an unknown planet in the unknown regions, Dura manages to pinpoint the source of darkness within the galaxy, and realizes that it's moving. Believing that the source of darkness is a sentient being of some kind, Dura boards a ship that she constructs using magic, and warps off towards the source of darkness. She arrives in a planet so close to the center of the galaxy, that it's in the process of being destroyed by the black hole. There, she meets an entity that calls itself the Ancient Ghost. Dura engages in combat with the Ancient Ghost, and manages to kill it. However, the battle left Dura with extreme wounds, and she died two hours after returning to her planet. Her final move was to create a child using magic. She left the child on the unknown planet, and named it Zurik.

* * *

Zurik grows up, training himself in the ways of magic, and soon becomes adept at magical combat. By that time, the Griev had begun unknown region exploration, and a ship lands at Zurik's planet. The Griev do not recognize Zurik as a magic-wielder at first, and Zurik faked himself as being a cargo pilot who crashed on the planet years ago. The Griev bring Zurik back to the capital, where he is dropped off. There, Zurik meets Priscilla, with whom he immediately falls in love with. Zurik reveals his magic powers to Priscilla, who accepts him as who he is, and the two of them have two children, whom they name Priscilla, after Zurik's wife, and Garzik.

* * *

The great inflation begins in the galaxy, after counterfeit credits go into circulation from the multiple crime lords that rule over the galaxy.

* * *

Priscilla and Garzik are both trained in magic combat, both of them becoming especially fluent at it. However, the Griev eventually discover Zurik's magic, and immediately condemns him. Zurik is forced to flee on a stolen cargo ship with his wife, Priscilla, and Garzik. Priscilla is left behind, because Zurik wasn't able to reach her fast enough. She is captured, and tortured, before being executed. Garzik becomes mentally traumatized due to his guilt over his sister.

* * *

After Priscilla and Zurik die, Garzik takes a ship back to the capital of the Griev. There, he single-handedly murders every major political and government leader, and kills another 900,000 innocent civilians with his magic. In his diary, Garzik says that he committed this genocide as retribution for his sister. Garzik eventually learns how to magically create a child, and does so, naming his female child Yuri. By now, the Griev had already been split into factional civil war.

* * *

Garzik dies in the process of creating his child. Yuri, growing up, is constantly surrounded by civil war everywhere she goes. This made her an adept fighter, and magic combatant. Eventually, the Griev finally settle the Civil War, and pour their resources into building a "utopian planet", which the Griev name Earth. However, a biological experiment gone wrong causes the Griev to quarantine Earth. Earth is eventually shut off from the rest of the galaxy, and grows on its own.

* * *

Eventually, the Griev, because of factional disputes and arguments, split into yet a second civil war. This time, the Civil war doesn't seem to stop. Yuri, to protect herself and future generations, conceives a child through magic, and puts it into a stasis pod, launching it at Earth. When the stasis pod opens, the child is taken in by Martha and Dracula, on the planet of Earth.


	144. Creation of Orlyx

Mavis burst out of teleportation right on top of the city. As soon as she came out of warp, she dissipated into mist, flying towards the ground to hide herself. After rematerializing in a dark alleyway, Mavis turned around the corner to look around for anyone who might be looking for her. She had to find the Orlyx.

Mavis's eyes glowed a little, as her extrasensory perception kicked in and gave her a reading on the entire city. After scanning every micrometer of the city, Mavis's extrasensory perception pointed her towards the north end of the city, where it had found a mining facility. There was a strong presence of Orlyx there. Without hesitation, Mavis walked out from behind the alleyway, and began to pace her way towards the mining facility.

The streets were really dark, and the buildings to the side glowed faintly. A few aliens and humanoids walked around, some of them throwing suspicious glances at Mavis. Luckily, none of them seemed to completely recognize Mavis. To the side, a man wearing a grey trench coat sat on a bench, writing something on his computer. Mavis looked back towards the area in front of her, and took note of the fact that the light was dimming.

Mavis blinked. Why wasn't she teleporting?

Well, that was easy. Mavis snapped her fingers, vanishing and reappearing right in front of the mining facility that her extrasensory perception had detected. It was an old building, for what she was used to in this place. It's outward appearance seemed to be crumbling away, and the people who walked in and out of it looked tired and abused.

Not wanting to attract any attention whatsoever, Mavis transformed into a bat, flying high above the heads of the many miners in the area. Mavis looked around specifically for Orlyx, her eyes glowing red with her concentration. Most of the miners were holding hyperdiamond drills. Mavis didn't see any Orlyx.

Well, that was, until her extrasensory perception found the room several feet underneath her, with the words, "Orlyx Smelter" stamped onto the front of the door. Mavis then realized that this mining facility was not meant to mine materials, it was meant to _create Orlyx_. Jumping down from her perch, Mavis flew down, through the hallways, as a bat. When she reached the Orlyx Generator room, she dissipated into mist, flying underneath the door, and rematerialized into a vampire. There was another worker in the room, whom Mavis knocked out instantly.

The generator itself was massive. Mavis saw huge amounts of materials being deposited into the front of the generator. It churned, and churned, melting and crushing and pressurizing the materials, until at the very end, it slid out of the depository chute, as a single tiny grain of Orlyx. It wasn't even larger than a grain of sand. And the entire process took about ten minutes. Ten minutes, over 900 tons of materials, for a single grain of Orlyx.

Mavis grabbed the grain, feeling its subatomic structure. Maybe she could replicate it? Mavis concentrated hard, trying to copy the subatomic structure of the Orlyx. This material was _tough_. Mavis gasped, as her eyes opened again, and she stumbled back. She caught the grain of Orlyx in midair before it hit the ground using telekinesis. When she got up, Mavis looked down at her other hand, and saw two more grains of Orlyx in that hand.

Growling with frustration, Mavis got back up, and looked around the room, until she located a box filled with all the Orlyx that the miners had stored up. When she opened it, she was greeted with about 300 grains of Orlyx. It wasn't even enough.

Not even close to enough.

Mavis grabbed a booklet that was laying on one of the generator control panels, and opened it. On the front, were the words, _Orlyx Generator: Mechanics._

Mavis flipped through the pages, reading every word on every page instantly with her extrasensory perception. The generator used 900 tons of materials, ranging from gold, to tin, to uranium. It heated the materials up to 37 google degrees, turning all the material into gas, and then froze all the gas molecules to absolute zero. After doing that, they used subatomic reassemblers to form every individual atom of the Orlyx, and that would create one single grain of the precious metal.

Dropping the book back onto the table, Mavis heard the door behind her open, and swung around, blasting the worker who opened it back against the wall so hard that he got knocked out instantly. Mavis snapped her fingers, and the doors closed shut again. She turned back to the book. And that's when she noticed something.

Sure, creating the Orlyx was difficult. But the raw materials that were needed to create it were quite easy to conjure up using subatomic manipulation. If Mavis just created the raw materials needed to form the Orlyx, and shove it all into the generator, wouldn't that work? But Mavis still needed the exact amount of grains of Orlyx that would be required to create the drill.

Mavis stared at the scepter, which was still in her hands. Her extrasensory perception kicked in, envisioning a drill for her. She would need at a minimum….about 40,000 grains of Orlyx. Mavis snapped back into reality, and turned towards the generator. 40,000 grains of Orlyx meant about 36 million tons of gold, tin, copper, uranium, and other elements.

Well, there was no other way to create it all other than subatomic manipulation.

Mavis clasped her hands together, concentrating as hard as she could. Outside, there was an explosion, and the sound of yelling. A massive pile of gold bars appeared inside the depository of the generator, along with a massive pile of other materials. The materials kept on raining down, not stopping. Mavis had her eyes closed, keeping the stream of alchemy-forged elements coming in.

The depository eventually began to overfill, but Mavis didn't care. There was another explosion outside, and the wall to the left of the generator exploded open, a tsunami of gold bars flowing out of it. Several workers were crushed, and more were trapped underneath the mass of metal. By now, Mavis's concentration was slipping, but she kept hold of it.

"It's her!" Mavis heard one of the workers yell, "it's- AUGH!"

The worker vanished under a pile of uranium that had just appeared on top of his face. By now, the generator was churning out grains of Orlyx like crazy. Mavis grabbed a handful of them, and counted. Her extrasensory perception told her that there were 22,000 grains of Orlyx in her hand. Mavis yelled in frustration, and turned back to the generator, which was still trying to swallow all of the minerals that Mavis had thrown at it.

At this point, Mavis was surrounded by several gigatons of minerals. Mavis could hear yelling in the other rooms, as the trapped workers tried to get out, and the rescuers tried to help the trapped. The machine wasn't working fast enough.

Mavis clasped her hands together, and telekinetically forced the minerals through the depository faster. There was an immediate effect. The grain of Orlyx that was barely audible soon became a stream of sand-like metal. After a minute of this, Mavis shut off the generator, and telekinetically snatched every grain of Orlyx. According to her extrasensory perception, she had 42,000 grains of Orlyx.

Good.

Mavis threw the grains up into the air, then used her telekinesis to weld the grains together. Slowly but surely, the grains began to fuse with each other. Until there was a shining drill head floating in the air in front of Mavis.

Mavis grabbed the drill head, opening her storage dimension and throwing it in, along with the scepter of the Cosmos. Mavis then teleported straight through the wall of minerals that was surrounding her, and came face to face with a rescue party.

Without even hesitating, Mavis snapped her fingers, and sucked the rescue party into a separate dimension, opening the dimension on the other side of the building and burping them out. Mavis continued running, teleporting through three more layers of walls, and finally coming face to face with a group of trapped workers.

One of those workers was holding a drill.

"Sorry, buddy." Mavis flicked her fingers, and the drill flew out of the worker's hands, and into Mavis's hands. She telekinetically fused the Orlyx Drill head with the drill. She then turned back to the workers, "Thanks," she said, grinning a little, "that will really help me later on."

With that, Mavis teleported through the entire building, appearing outside. And that's when she really saw the true extent of her subatomic manipulation powers. All around her, massive piles of gold bars, tin metal, and copper bars sat on the streets, some of the piles reaching twenty stories high. Mavis flew up, and was about to jump into teleportation, when suddenly, she felt a force blast her back to the ground.

"Mavis Dracula, give up!"

Mavis looked up, and saw a massive armada of fighters fly above her. They took aim, their guns bearing down on her position. Mavis reacted quickly, teleporting onto one of the fighters, and ripping its wings off. Other fighters all fired their missiles. These missiles were relatively fast. They travelled at the speed of teleportation.

But not fast enough. Mavis flew around the city, avoiding all the missiles, and redirecting some of them to the fighters. Three fighters went down as their own missiles collided with them. The fighters then opened fire, strafing the ground with gunfire, and forcing Mavis back a few meters.

Mavis growled. She didn't want to fight right now. She had to escape this place, before the Guardian found her again. The guardian was probably already on his way.

Mavis clenched her fists, and she felt three of the fighters above her get ripped in half, "Get out." Mavis said. Her voice resonated a little, carrying a slight echo, and sounding deeper than what it actually was. Immediately, all the fighters vanished, getting sucked into separate dimensions.

Without waiting, Mavis flew up, turned, and teleported away. At last, she was free to leave this place.

But that was before she noticed the Guardian following her.

* * *

"Yes, yes." said Josiah, "I assure you, Johnny, these clones will be the future of an empire that will be to last!" Josiah was standing next to Johnny, supervising the cloning facility that they had captured a day ago. Johnny had begun using the cloning facility to mass-produce soldiers that would be obedient to him and only him. The clone itself was of a relatively healthy and strong pirate by the name of Obsko Vess.

At the current moment, the cloning facility had just pumped out its first batch of 900 clones. The clones were born into adulthood, already fully-grown, and slightly genetically modified for combat. Johnny had already armed all of them, and they were beginning to take up military positions, such as guard, or infantry.

"Good," said Johnny, looking over the clones, who were at this time pacing the ramparts of the city. This was the birth of a new empire. One that Johnny would create to take back the galaxy. One that Johnny would use to protect himself and Mavis, if he was to ever find her again.

"Josiah," said Johnny, "give me the map of this planet again. I want to see who we can invade."

Josiah handed the map over, and Johnny opened it. "Hmmm…" Johnny thought for a few moments, "mobilize the clones," he finally said, "inform them that we will be starting an invasion on the city of Urokko."

Josiah nodded. He scrambled off, to tell the clones their new instructions. In his mind, however, he was beginning to have doubts. Was Johnny going to become a warlord, now that he had the means to do mass invasions?

He would have to find out.


	145. Guardian's Flight

Mavis only had enough time to pull out of teleportation right before the Guardian sped up to her and hit her with a telekinetic blast. She stumbled out of teleportation, her surroundings appearing around her, revealing her location, in a small urban-looking city district. She was close to the flatlands, but not quite there yet. Even so, Mavis had more pressing concerns than her location. She rolled to her left, right as the place she was just in vanished under a burst of light that came from the Guardian's hands.

 _You have survived me for too long_ , growled the Guardian, _first, you survive my initial attack, then you save your own galaxy. I will not allow you to proceed any further._

"Heh," Mavis grabbed the guardian telekinetically, and slammed him into the ground, causing all the buildings within a one mile radius explode instantly, "you're screwing with the wrong person." she growled. The Guardian got back up, and flew back at Mavis, but Mavis was able to deflect the attack using her telekinesis. Before the Guardian could attack Mavis again, Mavis had used her subatomic manipulation to create a massive wall of steel between herself and the Guardian.

As expected, the Guardian burst through the steel wall easily, and quickly located Mavis. Grabbing Mavis telekinetically, the Guardian flung her up into the air. Mavis stopped herself in time, but was thrown yet again into teleportation by the Guardian. While in teleportation, Mavis noticed the Guardian speeding out at her. She flipped back onto her front, breaking from teleportation, and falling back to the ground, which was 2 miles below her.

Before the guardian could strike at her again, Mavis had flipped around, releasing a series of nuclear explosions that slowed down the guardian, before the two of them connected fists in the center of the radioactive hellstorm. Immediately, there was a wave of energy that was flung out in all directions around their vicinity. The energy shattered the windows, and flattened the small buildings that were surrounding them.

By now, they were about a mile above the ground.

The guardian appeared yet again, right next to Mavis. Before the guardian could attack, Mavis had already sent a punch flying at his face. The punch was easily intercepted by the Guardian, who flipped around, and flung Mavis by her arm, down towards the ground. Mavis dissipated into mist right before she hit the ground, in order to prevent collateral damage to the people who lived in the nearby buildings.

The guardian, however, had different plans.

Mavis looked up right in time to see the Guardian fly at the ground at maximum velocity, and managed to form a shield around herself right in time. Everything around Mavis was instantly blown to shreds, the dirt ground vaporizing, revealing the metal flatland underneath. Mavis jumped back, putting some distance between herself and the Guardian.

 _You are impressively powerful_ , commented the Guardian _, even a challenge for me...you cannot imagine the lengths I would go just to defeat you…_

The Guardian leapt at Mavis, hitting her squarely in the chest with a well-placed punch. Mavis went flying back several light years, the punch even hard enough to cause her slight pain. Mavis slammed into the ground, and deflected the next punch. Mavis then stepped back, telekinetically forcing the Guardian into a different dimension, and shut the dimensional door off, trapping the Guardian inside.

But even that wasn't enough. There was a roar, and a crack appeared in the air in front of Mavis as the Guardian literally punched through the dimension, back into Mavis's dimension. Mavis didn't even have any time to react, as the Guardian released the largest wave of raw energy that Mavis had ever seen him release, right at her. A beam of light a city's length in diameter hit Mavis.

Instantly, Mavis felt herself beginning to disintegrate. Her body was vaporized instantly, but after the Guardian retracted the beam, what he didn't know was that there was something remaining of Mavis. A single neutrino, that somehow survived the blast of energy. Instantly, Mavis reformed from the neutrino, and she turned around, facing the Guardian yet again, who looked very surprised from his body language.

 _Infuriating_.

Mavis was flung through an entire building. She jumped up, and formed a shield, blocking the Guardian's next attack. She then teleported right next to the guardian, punching him hard across the face, and then grabbing him, and throwing him a few light years back. Before the Guardian even managed to hit the ground, Mavis teleported behind him, and slammed him down against the ground, blasting him into the dirt so hard that a neutron star formed where he landed. Mavis herself landed on top of the neutron star. The gravitational pull from the neutron star didn't even affect her movement whatsoever.

The Guardian, however, wasn't fazed either. There was a rumbling noise, as the entire neutron star was cracked open by the Guardian in a single punch. The Guardian flew out from underneath it, and shot a beam of white light directly at Mavis, which she deflected off towards the side, burning a hole straight through the shattered remains of the neutron star.

Mavis snapped her fingers, and a massive casing formed around the Guardian, trapping him inside a cocoon of superheavy material. Using her powers, Mavis lowered the temperature inside the cocoon to 0.00001 degrees above absolute zero. She didn't expect it to work, and sure enough, a second later, the entire casing burst apart with a blast of fire and heat.

But this time, Mavis sensed weakness. The Guardian no longer stood with as much vigor as he used to, and he was actually slightly lopsided, seemingly limping on one of his legs in midair. There was a slight crack in his glassy face, and the lights within his face were becoming dimmer.

Mavis, without hesitating, flew straight at the Guardian. In front of her, the Guardian calmly used his powers to form a solid barrier between himself and Mavis. Mavis smashed through the barrier with the force of converting an entire solar system into energy, flying through the wretched barrier, and slamming into the Guardian yet again, this time not reserving or holding back any energy whatsoever. This was her moment. This was her chance to kill the Guardian once and for all.

The Guardian was indeed tired by that point. And that was a strange feeling to him, because technically speaking, it was impossible for him to become tired. Mavis teleported behind him, punching his glassy face, then teleported again, slamming his chest with her fist. Before Mavis could initiate a third attack, the Guardian grabbed Mavis in midair, and was about to throw her, when Mavis broke free and kicked him far into the air, going so fast that he was blasted into a separate dimension.

Before the Guardian could leave the range of her extrasensory perception, however, Mavis had grabbed the Guardian through the separate dimension with her telekinesis, and pulled him back through, throwing him hard against the ground, where he slammed into the ground, so hard that he even created a two-atom deep dent in the metal crust.

Mavis landed next to the Guardian. By now, he looked weak. There was smoke coming out of his body, and his face had cracks all over it. He wasn't getting up, and his hands were glowing only dimly now. The Guardian slowly turned to face Mavis, who was now staring at him from above, her hands clenched. She was about to finish this guy off.

 _You will never finish me off_

"Yeah right." mumbled Mavis. She drew back her fist, and punched.

Instantly, there was a flash of light. The Guardian's body dissolved into light, and vanished.

Mavis stood there, panting. In her mind, she had felt a great disturbance when she had punched. As if something had not happened. As if she was missing something. Mavis frowned. She should be congratulating herself, what was she doing? But in the back of her head, she knew what was wrong. She was so used to that feeling, that it was impossible to ignore.

Whatever. Maybe it was only her extrasensory perception going haywire or something. Mavis opened up her dimensional storage, and grabbed the Orlyx Drill that she was carrying. Mavis turned it on, aiming it at the ground. It was incredibly sharp. So sharp, that the metal flatland began to whittle away before the drill even touched it.

Mavis accelerated the drill, making it go far faster than normal. As soon as the drill touched the ground, Mavis saw a hole appear. Using telekinesis to keep the drill level, Mavis completely let go of it, and let it drill on its own towards the outside. The speed of the drill, thanks to Mavis's telekinetic support, was beyond exceptional. It cut through the metal at a rate of one light year per minute. Pretty good, actually. The only problem was that the hole that the drill left behind was about half a foot in diameter. Mavis would have to figure out how to get through that…

Mavis suddenly looked around. Her senses were shooting danger signals at her again.

What was it?

 _Finally you're getting out of here_.

Mavis swung around, right in time to see a lonely man wearing a trench coat standing in front of her. He looked odd in the scene. His clothes seemed perfectly clean, despite the dust and dirt that was reigning everywhere else. Mavis took note that he cast no shadow, and appeared to shimmer in the light. Even from a distance, he held some sort of mildly benign, but also powerful aura.

"What?" Mavis asked, "you look familiar…." it struck her then. This was the person who told her to look for the Orlyx. This was the person who'sdr spoken to her in her dreams and in visions. "Who are you?" Mavis asked. It was a question that she had asked herself before, but didn't really expect an answer to. Sure enough, the entity didn't seem too keen on revealing his identity.

 _You'll find out eventually_ , he said, _you've finally gotten rid of the guardian. I must thank you for that at least._ The comment struck Mavis as odd, mainly because she noticed how the entity said "gotten rid of" and not "killed". Maybe killed was too strong of a word. Or maybe the Guardian wasn't dead at all…

 _You have doubts about the effectiveness of what you've done_ , said the entity, _why is that, Mavis Dracula_? Mavis sighed. She knew that she couldn't hide from whoever this thing was. She turned away temporarily, "He's not dead, is he?" asked Mavis, "The guardian is still out there somewhere?" it must've been true. Whenever Mavis killed someone, her extrasensory perception would always tell her. But this time, she got nothing from destroying the Guardian. It was as if nothing had happened at all.

 _The entity you call the Guardian,_ began the entity, _is an annoying little brat that I've wanted to get out of this realm for a long time. He's always so obsessed with being the most powerful. You should really listen to him. "I can beat her, no way she can stand up to me." Ha! See what happened to him..._ Mavis hesitated. This thing was talking about the Guardian as if it knew it very well.

"You don't fear me," said Mavis boldly. She knew it was a harsh, and possibly dangerous statement, but she didn't really care at this point. "You think you're more powerful than I am."

The entity chuckled, _Oh, you always think that power is everything. Power, Mavis Dracula, is only an illusion that you draw out to yourself. It is only something that you can strive for, not something that you can actually reach...only I can understand that. No, Mavis Dracula, I do not fear you, but I do respect you, for being one of the few people who wield an immense amount of this 'power' with an equivalent amount of maturity. Unlike the Guardian, at least…_

"How do you know the Guardian?" asked Mavis. Behind her, the drill continued going downwards, some metal dust popping out of the tiny hole that it had drilled by now.

 _I only know the Guardian, because I was there first,_ said the entity, _you probably won't be satisfied by that answer, but I don't really care. By the way, your hole is drilled open by now. Go and help your buddy Johnny out. He really needs it right now_.

"What?" Mavis didn't even notice how fast the drill really went. There was a grinding noise at the very bottom, as the drill broke through the layer of crust at last. Mavis turned back to the entity, but saw that it was gone. Nothing remained. Nothing but a broken down village, a hole with a diameter of half a foot, and Mavis.


	146. Good Old Universe

Mavis didn't really even think. As soon as she saw that the hole was drilled all the way through, she dissipated into mist, flying down it, and came out the other end a few seconds later. As soon as she did this, she turned around, and noticed that the realm she was just in was gone. The metal surface that she was just standing on had vanished, replaced by an empty space. Mavis blinked. What happened to it?

Whatever. Mavis turned back around, and saw the trillions of galaxies that spanned out before her. Already, her extrasensory perception was working, scanning each galaxy, combing the entire universe for a single person. She had to return.

Finally, she found it. A galaxy not far from where she was at the current moment. Johnny's life force was coming from that area. Immediately, Mavis vanished, jumping into teleportation, and reappeared in the galaxy. Her extrasensory perception scanned the area yet again, and located Johnny on a planet in the Outer Regions. Without even hesitating at all, Mavis closed her eyes, and teleported yet again.

* * *

Johnny pointed at the enemy troops, "Fire!" he yelled to his troopers. Immediately, his heavy cannons began to fire, raining hell down on the city ramparts. His clone commander came up to Johnny, "Should we begin the attack now?" he asked, "our troops are ready and waiting, commander."

Johnny nodded, "Alright," he said, "let's go. Send walkers to attack the left flank, troops can divide and attack the right flank. Send in our air force to destroy their center defenses. Our cannon's should've destroyed their air defense by now." The commander nodded eagerly, "Yes sir!" he said.

Immediately, Johnny turned to his squad. It was a group of humans and clones whom he had hand-picked as his best men. It consisted of three bounty hunters, two pirates, four clones, and Josiah, who had built himself a battle mech in the last week. He was pretty confident that it would work.

"Alright," began Johnny, "we're going in now. Remember, this is the last city in this entire planet that we have to conquer. Don't mess up, and don't die. Shoot anything that doesn't speak english, and blow up anything that doesn't look like a friendly. Got it?" Johnny's men nodded, ready to fight. They all stood up, most of them locking their guns, and Josiah activated battle mode for his currently-benign looking mech.

A few minutes later saw Johnny, and the rest of his troops attacking the right flank. The heavy walkers had already split up, and were marching towards the left flank. Cannon fire continued to rain down on the city, sending smoke and bricks flying everywhere within it. Johnny finally signalled to the cannons to stop firing, and turned to his men.

"Alright," he said, "remember, as long as you don't die, it should be good. Now let's go!" Johnny immediately turned into his electrical form, flying above the city ramparts. Josiah jumped over the walls with his mech's attack suit, and the rest of the troopers quickly scaled the broken and cracked walls. Bullets and explosions reigned over everything within the city. In the rubble, were the remnants of the defenses. But they were still prevalent. Machine gun nests, mortars, and hidden artillery pieces still posed a threat to Johnny's men.

As Johnny slowly began to make his way through the crumbling city, he finally reached a part of it that wasn't destroyed by his heavy cannons. There, the main bulk of around 500 soldiers and militia had organized themselves, and were preparing to defend against his attack. Johnny waved his hands, killing off a group of 25 soldiers instantly with electricity, "Come on," he yelled to his group, "we've got a lot to push through here!"

Johnny's squad moved forward, accompanied on the left by more soldiers, and on the right by tanks and mechs that he had captured earlier. They quickly tore through the remaining defenses that were within the side of the city that was destroyed, then turned their attention to the intact half of the city. There, enemy heavy machine gun fire and anti-tank guns were holding Johnny's men back.

Johnny shot electricity out of his hands, easily killing the enemy soldiers that manned the first few machine guns nests, and clearing a path through the anti-tank guns for his heavy vehicles. Johnny was about to shoot more electricity out of his hands, when suddenly, he saw a massive door at the other end of the street he was standing on open up. The mech ran at Johnny, using a hyperdrive that allowed it to accelerate to faster than the speed of light, and caught Johnny so off guard that he didn't even have any time to react-

 _Thwack_

Johnny went flying back several feet, and crashed into the ground. He was able to magnetically force the mech off of him right as the mech jumped at him again, and roll out of the way. He got up, bracing himself for another attack, when he suddenly noticed something. The mech was….dissolving? It was true. The mech was slowly melting away. As if it was being erased from reality.

Johnny looked around, and noticed that all around him, the enemies were slowly dissolving away. First their feet began to crumble away, then their legs, going up to this torso, and then their face. Johnny's men weren't being affected whatsoever, but they looked just as confused as Johnny did when they saw their enemies die in front of their eyes.

There was a rumbling noise, as suddenly, a bolt of lightning came down and struck the open street. In its place was a figure, who stood up. A figure that looked very familiar. Before Johnny could even issue orders, his men were already pointing their guns at the figure, yelling at her to get down. Only the original marketers recognized her, and were talking amongst each other in hushed voices.

The figure turned around, and Johnny finally saw her face. It was Mavis. She was back. Before Johnny could even do anything, Mavis had teleported right next to him, and had wrapped him in a humongous hug, accidently breaking Johnny's ribs.

"OW!" yelled Johnny, "Mavis...I think you...uh…"

Great. This was a great start, wasn't it?"

"Oh," Mavis rolled her eyes, setting Johnny down, and waved her hands, healing his ribs instantly. Johnny got back up, staring at Mavis. She looked so different. Her hair was even more jet black than what it was before, her eyes now glowed with a faint golden aura, and her hands were glowing white as well. By now, the troops around Johnny were starting to get that Mavis was a friendly, but were still awfully confused.

After Johnny's ribs were healed, Johnny embraced Mavis yet again, "Don't you _ever_ ," he said exasperatedly, "vanish into a different dimension _ever_ again like you just did. Okay?"

Mavis laughed, but she also noticed the change that Johnny had undergone. His eyes had bags under it, as if he had been stressing over something for the past few days. His originally skinny arms and legs had become way more muscular, and his hair was now jet black. There was a constant smell of ozone around him, and his hands were still glowing blue with the aftereffects of electricity.

Mavis looked around, at the remains of the city, and the heaps of dust that were once Johnny's enemies, "So what's going on here?" she asked, "you guys look like you've been in the middle of a battle.". As she said this, Mavis took note of the many clones and new marketers whom she didn't recognize in the vicinity. By now, the majority of Johnny's men had found their way to where Johnny and Mavis were.

Johnny nodded, "Yeah," he said, "we were just attacking the last fortified city on this planet. Come on, Mavis, I'm sure that you have lots of questions for us right now…" Mavis smirked, "you think you don't have any questions for _me_?" she asked in response, "I mean...I bet what I've been doing is a hundred times cooler than what you've been doing."

"I don't doubt that." muttered Johnny, as he turned to his troops, "Alright!" he began, "so for those of you who don't know, this is Mavis Dracula," immediately, there was a massive wave of hushed whispering. Mavis noticed that some of the troops looked at her with admiration, and others with fear, "since she was the one who gave me control of you guys in the first place, I'm handing over leadership to her. Carry on!"

The troopers immediately turned to Mavis. Mavis gulped. She wasn't used to leading armies like this. But she had to try, right?

"Alright," said Mavis, "my orders are simple. Loot this place as much as possible, then set up camp for the night. Still stay sharp, 'cause I don't know if I got all of the bad guys. I'll be rebuilding the city alone tonight. Any questions?" there was a considerable amount of hushed muttering, but Mavis got no questions. She nodded, and waved her hands, "dismissed." she said.

Immediately, all the soldiers began to walk around, talking amongst each other and finding places to sleep for the night. Mavis felt someone tap on her shoulder lightly, and turned around to see Josiah standing there, with a big grin on his face.

"What's up." he said, which was kind of surprising given that it was Josiah. He wasn't the type of person to say "what's up", but either way, Mavis still smiled a little, "Hey Josiah," she said, "you look...different, in a way." it was true. Josiah was wearing some sort of head to toe body armor, that had weapons and other systems installed into it. He had, similar to Johnny, become more muscular, and his hair was much more messy.

"Heh," Josiah shrugged, "I've changed, sure. Actually fighting on the battlefield has provided me with a source of exercise, I guess."

"Yeah," Mavis muttered, "battle does that, doesn't it?" but before she could ask anything else, Josiah had cut her off, "So what've you been doing?" he asked, "where've you been? Johnny's been worried sick for the past few days, if you didn't notice that when you came here initially...thought you were dead."

Johnny also decided to pop in at that moment, "yeah," he said, "what _have_ you been doing? All I knew was that you vanished into some sort of portal through reality, and that you had a ninety nine percent chance of being dead…"

Mavis rolled her eyes, "I didn't even come _close_ to dying," she lied easily, "but I did see some interesting things…" Mavis then talked for thirty minutes straight, detailing her entire journey through the extrauniversal land that she had just gotten through, how she tried to fight the Guardian, but failed in her first attempt, then created something that could help her destroy the crust. Johnny looked up in surprise when Mavis also mentioned that she had killed the Guardian. Mavis didn't even mention how she still had suspicions that the Guardian was not truly dead.

Josiah, however, was more interested in the logistics of the people who lived on the surface of the extrauniversal crust. "Fascinating," he murmured, after Mavis had finished recounting her previous few days, "Mavis, what type of technology did the army of the Guardian use, that could allow soldiers to teleport? A machine of that size must be huge!"

After answering all of Josiah's questions, and rebuilding the entire city with a snap of her fingers, Mavis settled down with Johnny on the second floor of a hotel that they decided to take rest in. There, the two of them debriefed for a moment, ate dinner, made out, and had sex. It was probably the most relaxed time that Mavis had experienced in a while. As the sun began to set, Mavis and Johnny were still wrapped up under the blankets, staring at each other in the dark.

"You don't look right," murmured Johnny sleepily, as he watched Mavis carefully, "you're thinking about something that's bothering you...aren't you?"

Mavis sighed, "It's nothing," she said, "it's just that...when I killed the Guardian, my extrasensory perception should've told me that he had died. But instead-"

"You don't think the Guardian's dead?"

Johnny's question hit Mavis like a truck, but she swallowed it down anyways, "No, I don't think he's dead." she said solidly, "he was weakened….scattered….as close to dead as you could get...but he's not dead, that's for sure."

Johnny murmured something inaudible, and gently tucked a little more of the blanket over Mavis, "Don't focus on that right now," he murmured, "it's only a theory, right? Besides, right now, we have more pressing things to worry about than the possibility that the guardian is still alive."

Mavis nodded silently. "Yeah," she yawned, her eyes slowly closing, "Yeah….."


	147. Barely a Memory

The next afternoon saw Mavis and Johnny in the city center, Mavis talking with Johnny, who was briefing her on what was going on in the planet. By now, the entire planet was under their complete control, thanks to the massive clone army that Johnny had acquired, every city being under the rule of a garrison of 6,000 heavily armed clones. The citizens who were living in the cities originally had been allowed to keep their property, but were now under temporary martial law.

Josiah had also delivered a report that slightly disturbed both Johnny and Mavis. According to Josiah, the Gordian Remnant, which were the remaining Gordian officers who were still loyal to the empire, had united yet again, and were combing the galaxy to reunite former Gordian territories. They had already acquired a large chunk of the Galaxy, and Josiah was willing to bet that they would soon shift their focus to their planet.

Mavis spent the majority of the rest of the afternoon installing defenses and modernizing the cities. She teleported from city to city, renovating each one with the snap of her fingers, using subatomic manipulation to create potentially anything out of nothing. Of course, the troops were at first shocked at Mavis's powers, when she replaced all of their standard issue rifles with state-of-the-art long range high explosive rapid fire teleporting bullet guns.

By the time the sun was setting, Mavis had already built herself and Johnny a home, in the center of the largest city on the planet. Mavis herself had built it to be four stories, with a main bedroom, and a guest bedroom, along with two dining halls, three swimming pools, two jacuzzis, a gym, a training facility, a war room, an observatory, a hangar bay, and a research room for Josiah, along with a meditation chamber for Mavis.

It was only after dinner, when Mavis felt something. Something was wrong. She was missing something. Something important. Johnny, who was sitting on the bed, reading a planet wide report given to him from one of his officers, noticed after a few minutes. Mavis hated how her feelings were always so transparent for the world to see. But even so, it was too late to hide them now.

"What's wrong?" asked Johnny, raising an eyebrow, "you're doing that weird scrutch-up-your-eyebrows thing whenever you're worried." when Mavis didn't respond, Johnny sighed, and got up, walking over to Mavis and sitting down next to her. Mavis, to be honest, wasn't ignoring Johnny because she was scared of telling him, but was actually silent because she was thinking.

"Mavis." Johnny's words caused Mavis to snap out of her trance. Johnny took note that her eyes dimmed a little when he said her name, "Mavis, you alright?"

Mavis shuddered, "Sorry," she muttered, "I've just been thinking...Johnny, there's something that I didn't tell you about what happened in the extra dimensional world. There's something else out there that's similar to the Guardian."

Johnny frowned, "Whaddaya mean?" he asked, "like, the same type of species? Or…"

"It's not that," said Mavis, "I saw this...thing...it was similar to the Guardian but it seemed more powerful...it only appeared to me as illusions, or dreams. It told me how to get out of the universe. I...I just don't know what it is. And it really bothers me...I think I've seen it before somewhere…"

Mavis stared out of the window of the room. Outside, the streets were peaceful and calm. Some people were milling out on the streets. Two men played cards in the right hand corner of her view, and a man with a trench coat was typing something onto his computer on a bench to the side of the main street.

Johnny grabbed Mavis's arm, "Listen," he said, "I believe you, but you have to listen to me. We have more important things to worry about right now. According to Josiah's latest spy drone report, the Gordian Remnant appears to be amassing a fleet of six hundred warships only a few hundred light years away from our position. You have to be ready. The troops need you."

Glaring at the wall, Mavis finally drew back her head and sighed, "You're right," she forfeited, "I shouldn't be worrying so much about some stupid reflexes from my powers…." she got up from her seat, and walked over to the bed, plopping down and pulling a sheet over herself. She felt Johnny also get into the bed.

After a moment of silence, Mavis heard Johnny talk, "Mavis...first, we have to defeat the Gordian Remnant. Then, we can worry about these...dreams that you are having. We can't afford to let personal matters interfere with the grand scheme of things. You're smart, and you know this as well."

Mavis nodded a little. "Yeah," she said, "I really do….tomorrow, call in a meeting in the war room. I have a few plans regarding the Gordian Remnant."

* * *

Gordian Imperial Officer Jorda entered into the bridge of the Gordian Flagship, the _Insurrector_. As soon as he entered, the first thing he saw was the view through the bridge windows, which showed him the entire Gordian Fleet, finally reunited. Hundreds of warships and dreadnoughts, along with corvettes, transports, and escort ships, gathered together at a single location.

Jorda walked directly across the bridge, and to Admiral Minara, who was the admiral of the _Insurrector_. Jorda quickly took note of the way the admiral looked energetic, despite having no sleep for the past few days. He stood straight, facing away from him, watching the entire Gordian fleet assembled in front of him.

"Sir," Jorda got Admiral Minara's attention fast, "we've just received confirmation from our chief researchers that Marck Station is complete. We've already proceeded to move the station onto the _Insurrector_."

At first, Admiral Minara didn't say anything. "Good," he finally said after a while, "bring me to the superweapon right now, I want to see it. This will be the turning point of the Gordian Empire. Lieutenant Marv, how far away are we from our target planet? I want an exact answer, not an estimate like how you always say stuff."

Marv, the imperial warp coordinator of the _Insurrector_ , pushed a few buttons on his screen, then turned to Admiral Minara, "Sir, we're 320,000 light years away from the target planet," he said, "according to my scans, however, it seems as if the planet has been taken over by Johnny, and what appears to be a clone army."

Admiral Minara was not fazed whatsoever. "Good," she said, "that way, Johnny will be there when I release the weapon on him. Jorda, lead the way please."

Jorda nodded, turning and walking out of the bridge, followed closely by Admiral Minara. As they walked through the long hallways of the massive warship, Jorda noticed several troops running through the halls, towards the hangar bays. As Jorda himself approached the doors to the hangars, the guards who were standing sentry over the doors let them pass. As soon as they had passed through the doors, Jorda heard Admiral Minara murmur, "Wow…"

In front of them, sitting in the main hangar, was a massive platform. On the platform was Marck Station. Fusion between the Marck and the _Insurrector_ had already begun, with welders merging the two ships together starting from the bottom. Jorda quickly took note of the way Minara was staring at Marck station. It almost looked religious.

"Incredible," murmured Minara, "finally, after all of our hard work...we have been rewarded...Jorda, tell me the capabilities of this station again?"

Jorda took out a notebook that was on his belt, "It..uh...it's hyperspace condensers can create singularities, and can throw them through space at speeds faster than light. The maximum damage that it can cause an enemy is enough to alter the scale of several star systems, but we can only use it once every three minutes. Quite fast, for a weapon of this scale."

"Heh," Minara smirked, the look of awe temporarily vanishing from her face, "with this, Johnny's puny clone army stands no chance against the Gordian Empire. We'll crush them, then we'll proceed to crush every other pocket of resistance within this galaxy."

Jorda grit his teeth. He couldn't let Minara figure it out. To be honest, he didn't mind killing billions of innocent lives, but if it came down to his family…

"Jorda, return to the bridge, tell my officers that we will be headed off to Johnny's planet as soon as this superweapon is installed," said Admiral Minara, "inform the fleet as well. This time, Johnny will not escape us. We will win."

Jorda nodded, and immediately retreated back through the hangar doors. By now, his hands were acting up again. This always happened whenever he got pissed off. Jorda stumbled through the hallways, gripping his hands, which were starting to glow bright red. He forced his way through a set of doors, into the bathroom, where he quickly shut himself into a stall, and stared at his hands.

It was happening again. As Jorda watched, fire erupted in his hands. Green fire. It's been a week since he had begun getting weird things like this. Just the other day, his hands nearly combusted in the dining hall, and here it was, yet again, acting up today as well. Jorda gulped, steadying his breathing. Slowly but surely, the fire dimmed, until it was a mere green glow on his hands.

Jorda cursed. If his suspicions were right, then this fire was due to his ties to the Order of Seekers. His mother and father were both Seekers, who were people who studied the mystic arts, in order to achieve powers beyond that of the physical. His father had died at the hands of imperial Gordian troops shortly after he had been born, and his mother had vanished. Jorda grew up in the Gordian Imperial life, training to become an officer. He was always scared of his powers acting up. But now, they were…

And now Admiral Minara had plans to take over the galaxy, with a weapon that could form a black hole. Jorda doubted that the Mystic arts could defend anyone against a singularity. His mother may still be out there somewhere...along with the rest of the Seekers. Jorda wouldn't just let them all die. That wasn't right. That was his culture, his heritage….

But he was a part of the imperials now. Why did he even care? Why was he so scared of his own powers, in that case?

Jorda sighed, getting up and walking over to the doors of the bathroom. Opening the doors, Jorda slipped through, and went over to the bridge, where he relayed Minara's orders to the other imperial officers in there. Immediately, Jorda was soon surrounded by excited talking and murmuring, as his own colleagues realized that they would be testing out their new weapon.

So excited, that they were about to commit mass genocide.

Jorda silently sat down in his cubicle, opening a few files to make it look as if he was being productive. He didn't know what he would do if something were to threaten his culture. He didn't know what he would do if something were to threaten his loved ones. But…he had to choose. Loyalty to the empire, or loyalty to his family?

In all honesty, Jorda didn't know.

* * *

 **This chapter requires knowledge of the M &J EU (Expanded Universe). Specifically, it requires knowledge of the Seekers and the Warriors. They will be playing pretty big roles in future chapters. **

* * *

**Power Levels:**

 **Mavis Lvl [11,000]**

 **Johnny Lvl [98]**

 **Josiah Lvl [23]**

 **Jorda Lvl [6]**

 **Some Backstory on the empire of Johnny and Mavis:**

 **Economy: Ran primarily through trade, contracted payment, and retail development. Economy is not important due to the fact that Mavis Dracula can provide for pretty much anything with her subatomic manipulation.**

 **Army: Consists of approximately 3.5 billion soldiers. A little more than half the population serves the army. Navy consists of a little more than 600 warships.**

 **Political Freedoms: Limited | Individual Freedoms: Very Good**

 **Cities under direct control: 79,000**

 **Capitol: Undetermined**

 **Education: Nonexistant**

 **Size of Planet: 1.7 times larger than Earth**


	148. Magic Within

Mavis's eyes flew open. She had just felt something. Her extrasensory perception was warning her. Without making much noise, Mavis turned a little in the bed, and looked around. Next to her, Johnny was sleeping silently. The entire room seemed calm and peaceful. Outside, Mavis heard the sound of the wind outside, and saw the streets, which were empty but calm. The sun was shining over her city at the moment, and the skies were clear.

So why was her extrasensory perception bothering her? Mavis silently slipped out of bed, throwing on her clothes, and walked over to the door, opening it and slipping out of the room. Johnny would understand. Mavis wasn't worried about that. As she walked down the stairs, Mavis snapped her fingers, and the droids that were stationed in the kitchen began to make breakfast for her.

As Mavis sat down at one of the breakfast chairs, a droid came over and slid a platter of Alfredo pasta onto her side. "Thanks." mumbled Mavis, creating a fork out of thin air, and swallowing the entire plate whole with one gulp. The entire time, she was thinking about what she saw through her extrasensory perception. What she saw…

An entire fleet of ships, about 900 in size, a few hundred light years away from them. They were approaching. And they had something with them...Mavis had only seen the thing they had once. It looked like some sort of giant space station...but it was attached to one of their ships. Whatever it did, Mavis's extrasensory perception had sent warning signals running down her spine as soon as her eyes landed on it. It was something dangerous.

Mavis took out her walkie talkie, which she always carried with her now. "Josiah, you there?" she called into it. On the other end, there was some muffled noise, before Josiah's voice came into focus, "Yeah," he said, and Mavis noticed that he sounded surprised, "what're you doing up so early?"

"I need you down here ASAP." said Mavis, "something important.". On the other end, Mavis heard Josiah say, "Okay." and the click that was trademark of someone turning off their walkie talkie. Mavis sighed, leaning back. She snapped her fingers, and 22 massive bowls of pasta appeared on the table. Now that Mavis thought about it, she missed food.

Josiah had just entered the room when Mavis finished her last bowl of pasta. By then, Mavis was about 2% full, but she didn't mind. "What's up?" asked Josiah, ignoring Mavis as she waved her hands and all the bowls that used to have pasta in them vanished, "you called me?"

"Yes," said Mavis, "sit down here." she ordered, pointing to the place in front of her. Josiah walked over and sat down hesitantly, not sure of what Mavis was going to show him. As Josiah watched, Mavis waved her hands, and used extrasensory perception to create a sort of hologram in front of him. A hologram that showed him something. A fleet.

"What's that?" asked Josiah, leaning forward a little.

"I saw this in my extrasensory perception last night," said Mavis, "my senses tell me that its dangerous. Not the fleet. But the fleet has something that is incredibly dangerous towards us. And it appears to be heading in our direction as well. I think I'm going to enact an emergency war meeting and set up a defensive in space. We cannot let something like that fleet even get close to us."

Josiah's brows furrowed, "Wait…" he murmured, "I know this thing. I saw it, through one of our spy drones. Is it coming for us?"

"Yes," said Mavis, looking at Josiah now, "they're coming for the planet. We have to defend it. So here's what I really brought you here for. I need you to figure out how far they are from us exactly, and I want you to give me an answer on how much time we have to prepare defenses, before they arrive and blow us out of the star system."

"Alright…" Josiah got up, "want me to go right now?" he asked expectantly. Mavis hesitated, then nodded. Josiah got up and walked out of the room, the door shutting behind him. Mavis turned around, right in time to see Johnny also come down the stairs. He looked a little tired, and when he saw Mavis, he rushed over, "You got up early," he said, "what's going on?"

"I felt something…" murmured Mavis, "I had a vision of an enemy fleet, several light years away from where this planet is. Josiah thinks that my visions are correct, so I sent him to go check on it. I think that if he confirms that what I've seen is real, then we're going to be holding a war meeting." as Mavis said this, she remembered how large the enemy fleet was. If they were actually that powerful, Mavis didn't know how well her planet's navy could hold out.

"It's fine," said Johnny, "we've been expecting this anyways. It's only been a matter of time until the Gordian Empire shifted their attention to us. Should I alert our officers and commanders of what's been going on?"

"Do it," said Mavis, "relay the message to every city and every outpost in the entire planet. Have the entire army mobilized and ready within an hour. If my predictions are correct, then our current navy doesn't stand a chance. We'll only be able to stall them for a small amount of time."

Johnny nodded grimly. He turned and went over to the control room, where he pressed a few buttons, alerting all the commanders and officers on the planet and putting them on code yellow, which was code for "be prepared for battle". The Navy and the defense stations in orbit around the planet were immediately alerted, and the troops were also immediately contacted.

It was only after a few minutes when Mavis felt a second jolt. She leaned forward, gasping. All around her, the ground and the kitchen that she was sitting in vanished, melting away into the familiar scenery of open space. In front of Mavis, she saw the entire fleet of ships that she had seen before, except this time, they were in right in front of the planet that she was on-

Mavis snapped out of it. She flew straight to the control panel, phasing through the walls, jumping in, scaring the crap out of Johnny, and turning the code signal to code red (We're under attack), "They're here, scramble the fighters and the frigates." was the only thing she was able to say, before she rocketed out of the room, phasing though the ceiling, and into open air.

Already, Mavis saw the army reacting to the code red alert. Soldiers were running through the streets, setting up defenses, and the planetary shield was being activated. Already, the sky was turning blue as the shield slowly covered the entire planet. Without hesitation, Mavis flew straight through the atmosphere, into open space. There, she was met with….nothing?

Behind Mavis, the first fighters and frigates were emerging from the planet. They amassed behind Mavis, scanning the area around her. Clearly, they weren't picking up anything, but Mavis was sure that something was wrong. Her senses had never been more certain, more concise to her about danger. They had to be around here somewhere…

Mavis floated forwards, and as soon as she did, it happened again. A wave of danger, running down her spine. It was then when Mavis realized what was happening. The ships were there, it's just that she couldn't see them. They were _cloaked_ -

Without warning, Mavis waved her hands, and sent a massive telekinetic wave flying outwards. Immediately, the ships came out of cloak, several of them crashing into each other. In the center, Mavis saw some sort of cannon that was being pointed at the planet. It was already glowing. Mavis cursed. They must've been charging the weapon while in cloak...she should've seen that coming.

Immediately, the enemy ships lashed out, firing at Mavis and the ships. The frigates returned fire, several of them launching torpedoes at the cannon. Mavis herself teleported, tearing through the bridge of one of the warships in an instant, destroying the entire ship. She tried to teleport towards the main cannon, but before she could, another enemy warships came between her and the weapon.

Mavis grit her teeth. These guys were annoying. She waved her hands, grabbing the warships telekinetically, and slamming it into a second warship, then grabbing every tiny piece of debris from the wreckage of the ships, sharpening them into knives, and tearing through four more ships. All around Mavis, explosions reigned. The frigates that were defending the planets were slowly crumbling, the overwhelming firepower of the enemy ships being too much for them, despite Mavis's help.

Mavis turned and teleported into Marck station. Without hesitation, she released a blast of telekinesis that instantly killed everyone in the same room as her. She then turned around and walked out of the room, going towards the room that held the cannon. Several guards noticed her, but they couldn't do much before they dissolved with a snap of Mavis's fingers.

Mavis walked over to the doors to the room that held the cannon, and kicked it open. She grabbed the only guard in there, killing him easily, then killing the three scientists, and the one gunner. On the screen, Mavis read the words: _Fire Sequence: 5….4….3...2…_

Mavis teleported to the control panel, and slammed the cancel button as hard as she possibly could. She had done it. She had saved her planet.

Or did she?

 _Firing Sequence Cancel Overridden by High Command….2...1…_

"NO!" Mavis's scream was muffled by the sound of the cannon firing. Even in space, the blast of it was enough to cause sound to temporarily come back to life. Mavis phased through the walls, back into space, right in time to see a bright beam of light fly straight at the planet. Without hesitation, Mavis teleported right in front of the beam, and created the strongest barrier she could in front of it.

The beam collided with the barrier, and instantly vanished, replaced by a single, black orb that began to quickly expand in size. Mavis instantly recognized it. This tug...this gravity was similar to that of a black hole. Mavis knew what it felt like, because she had felt the tug of a black hole when fighting Cedron before. Ignoring the relatively weak gravity of the black hole, Mavis reached out, and grabbed the black hole, condensing it back into a tiny sphere, and keeping it condensed in her hands.

Already, the gravity was getting to her. She wouldn't be able to hold it for long….she had to do something. She had to either get the black hole out of here, or somehow move the planet.

Mavis turned around, hurling the black hole as far away as she could. She then turned and flew downwards at hyperconceptual speeds, and slammed into the ground. Mavis put as much force as humanly possible into moving the planet, and as the seconds wore on, she felt the planet begin to move.

With a burst of strength, Mavis pushed the entire planet into teleportation, vanishing from sight completely. Behind her, the enemy fleet was left behind, along with a rogue black hole, a messed-up star system, and a bunch of destroyed warships.

* * *

Jorda turned to Admiral Minara, "We're at maximum acceleration," he informed her, "we'll be able to escape the pull of the black hole, but several of our ships are already down. Should we help them, or no?"

Admiral Minara's face was stern, "No," she said, "Those ships were the ones dumb enough to get too close to the singularity range, when I explicitly told them not to. Jump to warp, and set our coordinates to pursue that planet, wherever it went!"

"Ma'am, I don't think it warped," said one of the side officers, "according to my calculation, it's completely vanished from our scopes. I think they teleported."

"Ludicrous," said Admiral Minara sarcastically, "Get me some info on where they are. I expect answers in fifteen minutes. Jorda, you're to lead them in their planning. I'm going to talk to some of my high command officers for a brief moment."

With that, Admiral Minara exited the bridge.

Jorda looked down at his hands. They were starting to glow bright green again. He placed his hands into his pockets, and breathed hard, _stay cool_ , he reminded himself. He began to issue orders and instructions, ever so often pausing to cool off his hands. They were acting up a lot today. And Jorda knew exactly why, even though he was afraid to admit it.

He had magic within him.


	149. The Seekers

Mavis knew that she messed up as soon as she had jumped into teleportation. By the time she was out of it, an instant later, the crust was heating up, and the sand was slowly melting into glass. Luckily, most of the cities didn't receive much damage. Mavis let go of the planet, letting it drift in space. Above her, Mavis saw the warships that were under her control, that she had managed to grab telekinetically before going into teleportation. She sighed, relieved that nobody was hurt.

Turning towards the sky, Mavis blasted off towards space, eventually reaching it in a matter of seconds. According to her extrasensory perception, she was in the Far Unknown Regions, which were the planets literally at the very edge of the galaxy. All around her, Mavis saw asteroids that were now circling the planet. The star system's sun was quite close to the planet. Turning around, Mavis signalled to the pilots of the defense fleet that were still in orbit to return to the planet. When the pilots signalled back that they didn't understand what Mavis was saying, Mavis sighed and turned around, leading the ships back to the planet.

After Mavis stabilized the planet, putting its orbit back into place, and getting rid of the asteroids near it, she returned to the capitol, where she met with Johnny and Josiah, both of whom looked extraordinarily confused. The clone troopers were keeping the population in check, with 5 soldiers for every citizen. Even so, Johnny looked nervous when Mavis landed on the ground in front of him.

"Mavis, what happened?" asked Johnny, rushing forward, "I didn't see much...one moment, everything was normal, then the next, there was fighting in space, and the next moment, the position of the sun changed, the enemy fleet vanished, and it turned to night time here. What's going on?"

"The Gordian Remnant launched a black hole at us," said Mavis, brushing off some sand from her shirt, "so I grabbed the black hole, threw it back at them, and to avoid the effects of it, I also teleported the planet to a different location. According to my senses, we're in the Far Outer Regions, by the way. We're perfectly safe from the Gordian Remnant."

For Johnny, it was too much to take in. He stared at Mavis, his mouth open, "you _teleported_ the planet?" he asked, incredulous, "well….that's pretty awesome, actually."

Mavis grinned, in spite of herself. She punched Johnny's arm, "Come on," she said, "we have some work to do. Josiah, inform the population of what's happened, and keep our troops at the ready in case of any riots. Okay?"

"Ummmm…" Josiah fumbled a little with a laptop that he was holding, "that's good and all," he began, "but our sensors have picked up a ship approaching the atmosphere. It's approaching this city, to be exact, and it's an unfamiliar model. Our commanders are asking permission to blast it out of the sky."

Mavis frowned, "A lone ship?" she asked, "all the way out here? What type of...whatever. Let it dock, but only outside the city walls. Deploy the garrison, and have them at the ready. I want to see this personally." Josiah nodded, and began to press more buttons on his laptop. Mavis turned, and began to head out towards the city gates. Behind her, Johnny followed, his hands crackling with electricity.

"Wonder who it is?" he asked, "what do you think?"

"I don't know," said Mavis, "I mean...this place is known as the unknown regions for a reason...not even pirates and smugglers would go out this far." as she said this, Mavis saw in the corner of her eyes, a squad of twenty troopers run over to the gate, open it, and run through. Mavis didn't bother with going through the door. She grabbed Johnny's arm, teleporting into the area the ship was going to land on.

Already, the ship was in view. It was a sleek, but large ship, with two folding wings. It slowly descended, landing in the area designated for it. The lead commander yelled an order, and all the clone troopers raised their weapons, ready to fire. The wall-mounted turrets also swiveled around, pointing at the ship. Mavis tensed. She didn't know why. Usually, she was at ease before a battle. But for some reason, this ship made her nervous.

After the ship landed, its doors slid open. Three figures emerged from it. Two of them were wearing white cloaks, and wore masks. The last one was a tall, cloaked man. They didn't look armed, but Mavis knew that looks could be deceiving. Mavis stepped forward, holding up her hands as an order for her troops not to fire.

The taller man stepped forward, "My name is Yuri Sadao," he began, "We've noticed that you've brought an entire planet into our star system." for a person who just saw a planet teleport into his solar system, he seemed pretty calm actually, "we would like to know how you did it, what your intent is, and why you did it."

Mavis watched the men cautiously, "Why should I tell you?" she asked, "what're you going to do?"

"You have no idea who we are, stranger." said Yuri, "do you speak for this entire planet? Do you think that you have such authority over the natural world?"

"I'll tell you what happened," continued Mavis, ignoring Yuri, "I teleported this planet here. We were being attacked by the Gordian Remnant, and they launched a black hole at us. So to get us to safety, I teleported this planet here. Wasn't too difficult either. What're you gonna say to that?"

Her response, surprisingly, seemed to make Yuri pause, "You teleported it here?" he asked. Mavis nodded confidently, her eyes glowing slightly. Immediately, Yuri turned to his two other friends, and they began a deep conversation in some sort of foreign language. Mavis listened in to the conversation with her extrasensory perception.

 _Do you think she's serious? No way she actually did it….How else would have the planet gotten here? This girl has the mystic arts flowing through her! I can even sense it! Surely she would make a great Seeker-_

"I'm not becoming a seeker, and I'm not gonna mess around with your mystic arts BS either," yelled Mavis, cutting off the conversation, and causing Yuri to look up, surprised, "you guys can either declare yourselves allies, or enemies. Right now. 'Cause I'm not messing around with diplomacy."

Yuri Sadao smirked, "I know exactly what you can do," he said, "let me guess...you can transform into different creatures...you can lift objects without touching them, you can cause great harm to those whom you dislike at will. I know what you can do, stranger. You are no different than the millions who have arrived before you."

"Oh yeah?" Mavis's tone turned more aggressive, "I'm not screwing with what you know and what you don't know. Tell me, are you an ally, or an enemy. Now."

"You make this so difficult," murmured Yuri, "we are allies, obviously, but your current position in this star system, as well as the fact that you've added an additional planet to it, has caused us to ponder your use of the mystic arts. How did you do it? How did you teleport such a large celestial body so far?"

"I practiced," said Mavis sarcastically, "why am I to tell you, anyways? Who are you guys? Why are you guys all the way out here, away from civilization? Which planet do you guys come from? Why shouldn't I just shoot you down right now?"

"Two things," said Yuri, "One, if you tried to shoot us, we would survive and kill you. Two, you are in no position to make threats right now, as your entire planet can be conquered by us in less than a day. To answer your question, I am a part of an order known as the Seekers. We research and develop the mystic arts, and master it in different ways. I believe that your powers have something to do with the mystic arts. You have seeker blood in you."

Mavis blinked. "My mother and father were not a part of your organization," she said, "so no, I'm clearly not a seeker." but at the same time, Mavis realized that she didn't know much about her extended family. Apart from grandpa Vlad, she didn't know anything else about anyone else...she could have an ancestor who knew of the mystic arts.

"Your powers are underdeveloped," said Yuri, "Come with me, go to the planet of Koribaun, and we can show you the true extent of your powers. You will excel as a student under the Ancient Masters."

Mavis hesitated. She knew that she wasn't probably as weak as Yuri thought she was...but at the same time, she _was_ interested. She had always had an obsession with how she had achieved her powers. Maybe this would help her realize how, and why. Maybe she would even rediscover her extended family.

"Sure," said Mavis, making several of the troops, and Johnny look at her as if she was crazy, "I'll go. But be warned, if I find your...whatever-it-is unhelpful, then I'm returning to this planet immediately, understand?" as she said this, she clenched her fists. Was she making a bad mistake, or was she seizing an opportunity?

Next to her, Johnny grabbed Mavis's arm, "What're you doing?" he asked, "you're leaving this planet...for some stupid seeker's academy?"

Mavis smiled at Johnny, "I'll return," she said, "I'm only going to see if I can figure out some stuff on my family...and see if there's actually something out there that I can learn at this point. If these guys are really as amazing as they claim they are, maybe I can grow more powerful...it'll be helpful to me. And anyways, I'll be returning to you as soon as possible."

Yuri Sadao, who didn't hear any of this, smiled and said, "Great! Come on board this ship then...you'll be at our planet in no time." Mavis smiled at Johnny one last time, "Don't worry," she whispered, "I'll love you always. And I'll be back as soon as possible. I just...have some stuff to work out."

Johnny didn't look happy, but he knew that nothing he can say would ever sway Mavis from her decision. He nodded, "Alright," he murmured, "Love you, Mavis. Come back as soon as possible. And don't die."

Mavis turned and walked down, over to Yuri, and the four of them entered into the ship. There was the whir of engines, and soon enough, the entire ship had taken off yet again, flying through the atmosphere, into space, towards the planet of the Seekers. Johnny watched the ship fade into the sky, dread hanging over him. He was scared.

* * *

"Sir, I've located them!" called out Jorda, running over to Admiral Minara, "according to Spy Drone #38740274927027492, the terrorists are located in the Far Outer Regions. I don't know how they got there without colliding with a star, or ending up in a black hole, but it happened. We must pursue them!"

Admiral Minara nodded eagerly, "Very well," she said, "get all of our top navigators to Deck 2, we'll be discussing how to get through the unknown regions without dying...alert the rest of the fleet as well, have every crew member know exactly what we're going to be doing."

Jorda nodded, "Yes ma'am!" he said, then turned and walked out of the bridge. He went over to one of the communication stations, and logged in, then sent a message to every command bridge and center in the entire fleet, telling them of what was about to happen. "We're going to be flying into the Far Unknown Regions," he explained on the intercom, "Admiral Minara has ordered all Chief Navigators to proceed to Channel 3 to discuss navigation in such a dangerous region."

Jorda then tuned out of the communications channel, and went over to Channel 3. Already, people were talking about how to navigate through the maze of black holes, wormholes, rogue planets, and neutron stars that was the Unknown Regions.

Everything seemed normal.

Everything, except for the fact that his hands were acting up more than usual...


	150. A Hidden Family

As Mavis watched the windows of the shuttle, she noticed how strange the solar system was. The sun wasn't yellow, like most suns, but was actually a shade of purple. The planets were surprisingly close to each other, with the Seeker's Academy planet only thirty minutes away by shuttle. As the shuttle began to enter into the atmosphere, Mavis suddenly felt a tug of some sort. As if something in the planet was trying to pull her in. As Mavis straightened back up, Yuri Sadao turned to her, and said, "Welcome to Koribaun."

Mavis stared out the window. Outside, she saw shades of green and bright blue that she never thought she would ever see. Waterfalls, massive jungle trees, and crystal blue lakes spanned the entire planet. All around, Mavis saw people on the ground, practicing the mystic arts. There were alot of them. Soon enough, the shuttle began to land on a patch of grass next to a waterfall. The doors opened, and Yuri led the way out.

The first thing noticed by Mavis was the smell. It smelled...fresh here. The air was clear, the skies were blue, and there was a cool wind blowing against her, which felt really good. The next thing she noticed were the people. All sorts of individuals. They were mostly humans, but there were also a number of aliens meandering around as well. Most of them wore brown or white cloaks, and were either training or meditating. Mavis saw a teacher in the corner of her eye trying to teach his students how to lift rocks using the mystic arts.

Mavis smirked. This place was beyond her. As Mavis walked through the green grass, and around the crystal blue water, she noticed a large temple come into view in front of her. It was huge, large enough to fit at least a hundred thousand people in it. As Mavis walked through the front doors, she noticed the two white robed guards standing on either side of it. They wore masks, that covered up their faces, and on their belts, Mavis noticed energy blades.

Yuri first walked forward, leading Mavis through the long hallways of the temple. On the walls, Mavis saw banners hanging from the ceiling, as well as shelves stacked with books, each book having a title that was written in some sort of foreign language. The air smelled clean, but also old, as if this place was inhabited by someone who had not left the temple in several centuries. For some reason, Mavis found that prospect realistic in this case.

Finally, Yuri opened a particularly large door in the center of the temple, leading into a circular room. In the center, a man wearing a white robe and holding a staff sat. He was floating off the ground, and Mavis sensed that he was in the middle of meditating. Yuri cleared his throat, "Grand Master Gale, I've arrived with a potential new pupil. Her name is Mavis, and she is already experienced in the Mystic Arts."

Gale opened his eyes, and immediately saw Mavis. The first thing Mavis noticed was how stringently dressed Gale was. He was wearing two robes. The one on top was red silk interwoven with a white diamond pattern, while the one on the bottom was a brown silk cloak with leather padding on the shoulders. Mavis noticed Gale watch her with a slight distaste in his eyes, which had flickered to the dirty black t-shirt that Mavis was wearing, and the torn up sneakers.

"So," said Gale, in what Mavis would kindly describe as a slightly annoyed tone, "you've come here to learn the mystic arts?"

Mavis paused, "I've come here to learn of my parents," she said, "if I can learn anything from you guys regarding the 'mystic arts', then of course I would want to. But I also have other obligations, with my planet-"

"Psh," Gale waved his hands, "your planet does not need you, Mavis. The mystic arts governs this dimension, as well as all other dimensions, with an iron fist. Believe me, Mavis, your time is much better spent here, serving the mystic arts, rather than serving a planet that will never return the favor."

Mavis felt her body temperature rising. She already hated this person, "Whatever," she finally said, brushing off the comment, "I came here to learn of my extended family. I think they came from here...or somewhere like here. Since I have capabilities in the mystic arts, doesn't that mean that someone in my family has also had it?"

"The power of the mystic arts is hereditary," said Gale, "but if you're looking for your parents, then I'm sorry, but I can't help you. Our records only span to when we relocated to this planet, after the Mystic Wars. But we can try, after all, it is possible that the person within your family who had the mystic arts within them existed after that time…"

Gale got up, brushing away some dust that had gathered on his robes. He walked over to the door, passing by Mavis, "Follow me," he said, "we can go and check on the records hall right now to see if your parents were truly here at some point…" Gale led the way down the hallway, making turns here and there. Mavis spotted several other white robed people sitting at blank desks, studying books and texts. The place felt cold.

Finally, a door opened in front of them, and Gale, Mavis, and Yuri entered into a long shelf, filled with glowing holofiles. Gale turned to Mavis, "Here are the thousands of Seekers that have served in our ranks since the Mystic Wars. Every single one. Child, man, warrior, mother, traitor, and father. All of them are right here. Let me see here…"

Gale waved his hands, and Mavis felt something run down her spine. It was as if a cold bucket of water had been dumped on her. She shivered, "What was that?" she asked. Gale calmly turned back to the shelves, "I have just scanned you using the mystic arts, and I'm going to use it to find any holofiles that may potentially have your parents in them. Wait here…"

Mavis watched, as Gale drifted to the shelves, going through them. He pulled out several holofiles, looking through each one, and closing it. After a few minutes of looking through the holofiles, Gale looked as if he was about to give up, when he seemed to see something out of the corner of his eye. He walked over to a relatively small holofile in the far corner of the shelves, and pulled the holofile out, viewing it.

It happened for just a flash of an instant. A flash of fear ran through Gale's face, and was quickly forced away as fast as it had appeared. He walked back over to the shelf, and slid the holofile back into it, and turned to Mavis, "No," he said in a gravely tone, "we do not appear to have your family's identification within our archives."

Mavis knew that this was far from the truth, but something told her not to outright accuse Gale of lying to her, "Okay," she said, putting up a blank stare, "so...um...I guess I'll go back to my planet? I mean...the only reason I had for coming here in the first place is to figure stuff out about my family..if you can't provide that, then-"

"Oh, no," intervened Gale, "no, no, no...you should stay here! Just for one night, at least."

Immediately, Mavis felt danger signals shoot down her spine yet again. Gale was faking something. He was hiding something from her. Mavis already knew what it was. There was something in that holofile that Gale was too scared to share with her. But she knew better than to directly challenge an enemy on his home turf. "Um...okay," said Mavis, bowing in thanks.

"Excellent," said Gale, "Yuri, please do show Mavis to the guest quarters...then meet me in the conference room. Mavis, please do enjoy your stay.". Mavis faked a smile, and nodded, "Thanks," she said, "I certainly hope I do enjoy this stay…"

A few minutes later saw Mavis in her guest quarters. It was a pretty blank room, with white walls, a simple bed, a table, and a closet. There wasn't anything unnessecary provided in the room. Mavis sighed, sitting down on the bed. In the back of her mind, she was tracking the movements of Yuri Sadao, Gale, and fourteen temple guards with her extrasensory perception, but in her conscious mind, she was thinking about the holofiles.

What could they mean?

Sitting down on the plain bed that was provided to her, Mavis honestly didn't know. There were infinite possibilities of what it could mean. But...there was one way to find out. Mavis closed her eyes, concentrating. Her vision tunneled yet again, flying through the halls, up a flight of stairs, and through four doors, until she was in the temple conference room. She had heard Gale talk to Yuri about meeting in the conference room, and Mavis had an idea of what they were going to be talking about…

The conference room itself was large, and at the current moment, filled with cloaked men who walked around, speaking with each other. In the center, was Yuri and Gale, who were speaking to each other in hushed tones. As Mavis walked around, she overheard multiple conversations, and it only strengthened her belief that there was something weird in the holofiles. Eventually, Mavis's vision reached Gale.

"It is true…" murmured Gale, "but how strange! I never foresaw any of this in my time meditating with the mystic arts. Such an anomaly should've been seen immediately! The warriors must not return to existence, no matter what. It's not only for our sake, it's for civilization's sake! They are a threat!"

"But what about Mavis?" asked Yuri, getting Mavis's attention, "she doesn't seem to know it. Wouldn't it be helpful, if we trained her in the ways of the Seekers instead? It seems as if she already has a great knowledge of the Mystic Arts, after all. If she's such a threat, then we can reverse it for our own advantage."

"No," Gale waved his hands, "Mavis is too dangerous. Her holofile says that she's a descendent of _Garzik_. Do you know how dangerous he was? He was a mass murderer! His skill in the Mystic Arts was unparalleled! If he was more patient, he could've ruled the entire galaxy! No, I will not have a person such as Mavis within our ranks. It is simply too dangerous, and too risky."

Mavis's vision snapped shut. She opened her eyes.

She had to find some way to get out of here. Mavis ran over to the door, not even bothering with checking if it was locked. She phased through the door, flying down the hallway, and entering back into the main library. Before anyone could even see her, she had transformed into a bat, flying through the library without anyone noticing, and then entering into the entrance of the records hall-

Immediately, there was a loud blaring noise, as the entire hallway turned red. A female voice came onto the intercom, _Attention: there has been an intruder detected in the Records Hall_. Mavis didn't even panicked. By now, she was used to getting caught. She silently teleported into the records hall, running over to the holofile that Gale had read, and grabbed it. Her extrasensory perception scanned it, reading Gale's fingerprints, and confirming that it was the correct holofile.

Mavis heard someone yelling outside. The doors to the record hall opened right as Mavis teleported out of the temple completely, landing in a patch of grass outside. Mavis scrambled up, startling a robed man who was meditating nearby. "Sorry." muttered Mavis, before teleporting away again. This time, she landed in a grove of trees.

Scrambling up, Mavis looked behind her to see the temple. At this distance, no normal person could hear anything, but for Mavis, she could hear people talking.

"FIND HER." Mavis heard Gale bellow to his subordinates, "make sure she doesn't leave this planet. I've already cast a spell over the planet so she can't escape. You, you, and you, go outside and alert the rest of the Seekers of what happened."

Mavis looked up, at the sky. She concentrated, trying to teleport back to her planet, but something stopped her. As Gale had said, he had just cast some sort of shield over the planet so that she couldn't escape. Mavis slammed into a wall mid-teleportation, and opened her eyes to see that she was still in the same area as she was before.

Crap.

Mavis gripped the holofile she was carrying a little harder. She was trapped on this planet, and there was no way of escape.

* * *

 **Note: Well here you guys have it. Chapter 150. SAT Exams have just finished, so that's why I didn't update yesterday or the day before that.**


	151. The Mystic Arts

Mavis trudged her way through the grass, stopping only if her extrasensory perception alerted her. The holofile was still in a tight grip in her hands, and she hadn't bothered to open it yet. The main reason of this being that she was scared. What made her ancestors so frightening that the Seekers would try to trap her on this planet? But even so, Mavis had to find out the truth about her past. She had already determined a long time ago that her powers were...well…"above average".

Walking past another grove of trees, Mavis quickly realized how repetitive this planet was. If it wasn't for her extrasensory perception, she would've gotten lost a long time ago. The trees all looked the same, and every time she passed by a pool of crystal blue water, she would see that it looked exactly the same as the last pool that she had passed. It was, essentially, a maze of trees, lakes, and rocks. Mavis wasn't bothering to teleport, since she saw no need to. Wherever she walked, she would telekinetically wipe her footprints. Whatever she touched, her fingerprint would be wiped telekinetically.

Eventually, Mavis stopped by a lake. She stooped down, drinking some of the water, then created a small shelter using subatomic manipulation. By now, Mavis had given up on attempting to escape the planet. She had tried flying into space, teleporting even harder, and had even used subatomic manipulation to throw rocks and meteorites at the shield, but it was all to no avail.

The ground was warm, despite it being nighttime. Mavis frowned. This planet was strange for alot of reasons. She had already noticed that the tilt of the planet's axis was off, and that it appeared to have no moon. The mystic arts appeared to have a drastic effect on this planet, despite it seeming peaceful and quiet. Whatever. Mavis had more important things to attend to right now.

The holofile.

Mavis sat down at the table in her shelter, which was an obscure cabin that she had conjured out of nowhere. There, she took out the holofile. Breathing in for a second, Mavis opened up the holofile, and began to read. Immediately, she knew that the person she was reading about wasn't a normal wielder of the mystic arts.

 _Garzik -_

 _Garzik Zin was a Seeker living in the years 31 BMW. He was known for the sacking of the Capital of Griev, and for the mass genocide of 900,000 innocent civilians. Garzik's capabilities in the mystic arts are known to be off-the-charts, and completely unrivaled. Although it is believed that he has died several thousand years ago, there has been no proof, and no body has ever been recovered._

Below this brief description, an image of Garzik was produced. It clearly wasn't a photograph, but instead appeared to be a painting of some kind. Garzik's face was heavily chiseled, as if from a stone. He was clearly very strong physically. His hair went all over the place, but in a cruel, jagged sort of way, rather than in a messy way. Even as Mavis watched the holofile of Garzik, she immediately felt some sort of connection. As if a piece of her had just been restored.

This person was the reason she was so powerful.

Mavis stared at her own hands. Mass genocide. The deliberate murder of 900,000 civilians. An infamous terrorist of the mystic arts. Hated amongst the entire galaxy, probably. But that still didn't explain why Gale was so scared to tell Mavis...if Garzik was such a bad person, why not just tell her? It wasn't as if she was going to explode at Gale for it.

Mavis blinked. She had to snap out of it. Great, she had the information she came here for. Now she had to find a way out of this planet. She could always look into Garzik after she returned to her planet. Mavis began to think. There has to be something that can escape the planet. Maybe she could send a signal to Johnny and tell him to mount an invasion? Maybe enough firepower could crack the shield. The only reason Mavis wasn't throwing bombs at the shield was because that would give away her position.

There had to be some way….

 _Snap_

Mavis's eyes widened. There was something outside. Why did she let her own guard down? It didn't make any sense...Mavis growled with frustration. A wave of her hand locked the door to the cabin, and a second snap of her fingers caused the trees and bushes around the cabin to close in on the cabin, essentially creating a kind of camouflage.

Mavis backed up against the wall, her hands outstretched and glowing. She could feel the movement outside, and knew that there was a group of at least 12 people within a fifteen meter radius of the now-invisible cabin Mavis grabbed the holofile telekinetically, and quickly shoved it into her dimensional storage, locking it away safely. Outside, Mavis heard more crunching.

How had they found her so quickly? Mavis head a voice yell outside, "We know you're here, Mavis! Show yourself!" Without making a single sound, Mavis twisted around, transforming into a bat, that flew up onto the ceiling. Outside, Mavis heard one of the Seekers yell, "I think I've found something!". A second later, there was a loud explosion, and the front door to the cabin blew outwards.

Mavis kept a low profile, as three Seekers burst into the cabin. They wore white robes, with shoulder pads, and two of them carried energy swords. As soon as they entered, Mavis flew down, and out through the door, right into the face of a fourth Seeker. Almost immediately, Mavis stopped in midair, and tied to fly upwards, before one of the mages shot something out of his hand, which hit her, and forced he back into vampire form.

"Heh," commented the Seeker snarkly, "Gale told me that you had the ability to turn into a bat….good thing that he did tell me that, I almost let you off the hook.". Mavis scrambled up, watching the seekers unfold in front of her. Under normal circumstances, she would've lashed out in an offensive attack by now, but she took particular caution when it came to those who could yield magic like her….

The attack came at Mavis in slow motion. It was a telekinetic blast, coming from the lead mage. Mavis easily dodged the attack, teleporting behind the line of mages, and blasting them all backwards. She was about to blast them all to dust, when one of the mages jumped back up, sending a bolt of electricity flying at her. Without really trying, Mavis absorbed the electricity into her hand, and sent it flying back at its caster. The mage was blasted back nearly a hundred feet, slamming three trees. Mavis sensed that he had 19 broken bones.

It was then when a second mage charged at Mavis with an energy blade. Mavis dodged the first two swipes, then grabbed the mage's arm, snapping his wrist, causing him to holler in pain and drop the blade. While the blade was falling, Mavis telekinetically forced it straight through the mage's stomach, causing him to collapse as well. Two down, three more to go.

Mavis eventually realized after a few seconds that she had nothing to fear from these people. They only knew how to do the most basic telekinetic attacks. They were essentially children, playing with an art that Mavis had already mastered a long time ago. As Mavis teleported behind the third mage, she grabbed him by the neck, choking him, then slammed him against the ground so hard that she heard his spine break.

As another energy blade came at her, Mavis ducked, avoiding the blade, then knocked it out of the fourth mage's hand telekinetically. Before the mage could do anything, Mavis had flicked her fingers, and she disintegrated to dust. The last mage backed up, his eyes bulging with fear. His lifted his hand, and launched a shower of green sparks into the sky.

"NO!"

Mavis teleported right in front of him, punching him so hard that he literally disintegrated. But it was too late. Above her, the sparks were still showering down on her location. There was a snap, and Mavis turned around to see a portal open, with Gale, along with a dozen other mages, walk out. Before Mavis could teleport away, she realized that Gale had reformed the teleportation barrier that was around the planet, and had made it so that it surrounded Mavis, in a one hundred feet radius.

Mavis growled. Her hands lit up, and her eyes began to glow a dangerous shade of dark purple. Gale walked forward, kneeling down next to the fallen mages, and feeling their pulses. He stood up, and said something to the other mages, then turned to Mavis, "So you managed to kill a group of my scouts."

"Yeah," said Mavis, holding up her hands in a defensive position, "they were easy kills though...maybe you'll be a little more difficult?" Gale hissed at her, his eyes becoming slits temporarily. He motioned to his guards, who immediately began to move up towards Mavis's position. "You know nothing of the mystic arts," growled Gale, "you have talent, you have potential, you have skill...all you lack is a teacher."

Mavis didn't have any time to respond, as the guards decided at that moment to attack. Mavis blocked off the first two attacks, teleporting through their ranks before a third strike could come her way. With a flick of her fingers, she blasted the guards to dust, and was about to charge at Gale, before Gale sent a telekinetic wave at her.

Mavis teleported through the telekinetic wave, reappearing above Gale, grabbing him her legs and flipping him around so hard that she easily broke one of his arms. Gale teleported through Mavis's grip, into the open, and drew an energy blade, flying at Mavis. Unlike his peers, Gale was actually a quick fighter, slashing at Mavis quickly and efficiently. Mavis dodged the first three attacks, then got stabbed straight through the chest on the fourth attack.

She didn't even feel any pain. Mavis allowed Gale to cut straight through her shoulder blades, her body healing itself in a fraction of an telesecond. Mavis then turned and blasted Gale backwards, slamming him against the barrier that he created. To prevent all of his bones from getting crushed, Gale temporarily shut off the barrier, making it so that rather than getting slammed against the barrier, he instead slammed into the ground three hundred feet away.

It was in that moment, when the barrier shut off, that Mavis realized how important the moment was for her. She could escape. She could get off of this planet. Before Mavis could do anything, she realized that Gale had vanished. Looking around, it was only too late by the time Gale had teleported behind Mavis, and kicked her clean across the face. Mavis was blasted backwards.

 _Crack_.

Gale collapsed, screaming in pain. Mavis through the air, slamming into a tree, and scrambled back up. In front of her, four massive warships came out of warp. On the deck of one of the ships, Mavis sensed Johnny's presence. A few hundred feet away from her, Mavis saw Gale, on the ground, with electricity still crackling off of his shirt. Mavis's eyes widened. Johnny managed to hit Gale with electricity from _that far away_ -

"Attention, the inhabitants of this region of the planet have dealt crimes against our leader." Johnny's voice boomed down at them from above, from the ship-installed intercom. Almost immediately, the cannons that were mounted on the warships began to fire, raining down death and destruction onto the landscape. Already, a massive swarm of transports were approaching from the warships. Mavis sensed Johnny in one of them.

Gale hissed. His eyes became slits, "You've brought war to my planet, girl!" he screamed. He leapt up, jumping at Mavis, but before he could get close to Mavis, Mavis had thrown him backwards with telekinesis, causing him to break his wrist and get a nasty cut over his eye. Mavis almost felt sorry for Gale. He thought he knew the mystic arts. But in reality, he didn't understand it at all.

None of these guys understood the mystic arts at all.

None of these guys, except for Mavis.


	152. Two-Front War

Mavis knew immediately that this was going to spell trouble for both her men and the Seekers. But even so, she was quite used to constant warfare at this point. She sprinted forwards, blasting all the Seekers back with a single, massive telekinetic wave. This cleared a patch of ground for the incoming transports. Mavis watched as the transports opened fire, sending missiles and laser bolts flying straight at the Seekers, who had to duck behind cover in order to protect themselves. Soldiers ran out, with Johnny in the lead. As soon as he saw Mavis, he ran over, "Come on Mavis," he said urgently, "we're going back home."

Mavis nodded a little, and followed Johnny into one of the transports. Already, the Seekers were retaliating, sending bolts of energy flying at the soldiers. Mavis turned around, telekinetically grabbing a wounded soldier from the battlefield, and dragging him onto the transport. She then turned to the pilot, "We're good," she said, "get us out of here."

The pilot nodded, pressing a few buttons on the control panel, and soon enough, the entire transport was lifting off. Below them, Mavis saw the many Seekers, firing bolts of light up at the transport, each one missing. It was kind of pretty actually. In the distance, Mavis could see the smoking remains of the Seeker Temple, blown to ruin by the three warships that had warped in.

Mavis breathed a sigh of relief, sitting back on her seat, right as she felt it. A sense of danger. It was so familiar, yet also so alarming. Mavis turned around, "Pilot," she said, "begin evasive maneuvers right now." the pilot looked back, confused, "Leader," he said, "we're not being chased by anything...why would we do evasive maneuvers?"

"Just do it." grumbled Mavis.

"Of course," said the pilot hurriedly. Soon enough, the transport was doing evasive maneuvers in the air, about eight miles above the ground. Mavis sat back. Maybe her senses had failed her. But that wasn't right. Her senses never failed. Ever. Mavis's eyes suddenly widened.

"LOOK OUT-"

A bolt of light suddenly flew out of nowhere, cutting through the left wing, a second bolt of light blasting the engines to a dead halt. There was a scream, as the back doors blasted open, sucking three soldiers out into the atmosphere. By now, the transport was slowly falling, losing altitude.

Mavis quickly deflected eight more bolts of energy that were headed towards the transport, all while telekinetically holding the entire transport together. They were free-falling by now. As they neared the ground, Mavis halted the entire transport, levitating it slowly to the ground using her powers. The soldiers stared at her in wonder. Even Johnny looked surprised.

"Everyone out!" yelled Mavis, pointing to the open back doors, "set up a perimeter, be ready for anything!"

The clone soldiers ran out, setting up the perimeter almost immediately. Mavis was surprised at their efficiency. They were trained well. Next to her, Johnny followed the soldiers out, yelling out his own orders. The two pilots scrambled out of their seats, and blasted their doors open, jumping out of the transport, and onto the ground.

Already, the Seekers had located their crash site. Through the dense trees and shrubbery, Mavis made out several life forms that were approaching her position. To Mavis's left, a clone soldier yelled as he was struck by a streak of light that had flown out from the trees. Several of the soldiers had also opened fire on the Seekers who had gotten too confident with their stealth.

Johnny, who was standing in the area of the perimeter where there was the most fighting, was already launching bolts of lightning and waves of electricity at the Seekers. Mavis teleported right next to him, right in time to grab three seekers telekinetically and kill them. "Everyone on me!" yelled Mavis, running forward. She teleported in front of one of the Seekers, throwing him against the ground, then blasted two more Seekers back. These guys weren't that strong...were they?

A chill ran down Mavis's spine, and she stepped back, avoiding an energy blade by a centimeter. Without really thinking about it, Mavis had intercepted the Seeker's arm, twisting it back and breaking it, then throwing the Seekers himself several hundred meters away, where he slammed into a tree, and slid down, unconscious.

Behind Mavis, the clone soldiers were rallying. The majority of them had been cut down by now, but the few who survived quickly jumped into the offensive with Mavis. Johnny also followed, assuming his electrical form, and cutting down several dozen more Seekers. Mavis heard one of the pilots of the fallen transport say into his communications chip, "Requesting immediate emergency transport right now...yes...yeah, the leader is with us! Hurry!"

Above her, Mavis saw a second transport ship fly out of one of the warships, escorted by a dozen fighters this time. She was confident that this time, nothing would go wrong. But, of course, something always went wrong. This time, Mavis sensed it a few seconds in advance, and there was nothing she could do, apart from point up at the sky.

Right as the entire Gordian Remnant came out of warp on top of the planet. There was a bright flash of light, as the cannons on board the warships of the Gordian Remnant, which were far larger and far more destructive than those that Mavis had on her side tore Mavis's warships to shreds. Two of the warships were immediately destroyed, and the last one was forced to retreat, warping back to the main planet.

Crap.

Mavis saw many of the clone soldiers point up at the Gordian Remnant warships in warning, right as they opened fire on Mavis's position. Mavis easily redirected the massive artillery shells to the enemy Seekers, blowing several of them up. Next to her, Mavis heard Johnny cry out in pain and collapse, as a bolt of energy hit him directly on the shoulder. Right as that happened, another explosion killed four of Mavis's clone soldiers.

"Augh…" Mavis flicked her fingers, killing a dozen Seekers instantly. Above her, Mavis grabbed one of the Gordian Warships telekinetically, and tore it from the atmosphere, hurling it down at the area in front of her, killing all of the Seekers that were once standing in front of her. She then ran over to Johnny, helping him up, and checking his wounds. The wound on his shoulder was a nasty purple color, and veins were beginning to appear near the area where the wound was.

"Mavis…" Johnny got up, clutching Mavis's arm, "We have to get out of here." Right as Johnny said this, another artillery shell landed a dozen meters away from the two of them, incinerating a group of three soldiers, and sending Johnny flying back again. Before he hit the ground, Mavis grabbed him telekinetically. Before anything else could happen, Mavis had teleported away, back onto her own planet.

* * *

"No!" Admiral Minara slammed her fist against the control panel, right after watching Mavis and Johnny teleport away. On the ground, a group of wizards and witches were already swarming around, searching for the now-gone Mavis and Johnny. The entire room shook yet again, as the _Insurrector_ sustained another hit from another energy blast from the Seekers.

"Admiral, the wizards and witches are attempting to contact us," said one of the officers, turning to Admiral Minara, "should we respond, or should I cut communications immediately?" Admiral Minara paused. She knew that war with these magic-users would likely result in nothing but death and destruction for both of their sides. But at the same time, she also knew that they had a common enemy…

"Patch them through." said Admiral Minara.

There was some muffled static, until a clear voice came through, "Greetings," said the male voice, "My name is Gale. I am the leader of the Seekers, a group of people seeking enlightenment in the Mystic Arts. It seems as if we have a common enemy, yes?"

Admiral Minara immediately responded, "Yes it does appear that way," she said, "I am Admiral Minara, leader of the Gordian Remnant. We have been hunting Mavis and Johnny for the past several days. They have committed heinous crimes against humanity, and have been responsible for thousands of deaths within our empire."

"I see," said Gale, through his end, "because of our common goal, we should coordinate and plan together, as to defeat and possibly even kill Mavis...and this Johnny whom you speak of. I have thousands of Seekers that would gladly help us in our fight, but we must still be cautious. Mavis has proven to be capable of far more than what I expected."

"I am more than aware of the danger that Mavis holds to this galaxy," said Admiral Minara, "Gale, perhaps we can discuss this in person? That way, we don't have to deal with all of this static…"

"Yes," said Gale, "send a transport down to the planet. Perhaps that way, we can make our attack plans in a place where our enemies won't be able to spy on us through technology...go to coordinates 147 89 267. I'll see to it that a beacon is set up there as well so that you can find it easily."

"That would be appreciated." with that, Admiral Minara shut off communications. She motioned to her officers, "Prepare my shuttle." she said, "get me a personal guard as well. We're heading to the surface. Jorda, you're in command until I return."

Jorda nodded, as he watched Admiral Minara vanish through the bridge doors. After she left, Jorda turned to the crew of the bridge, who were now looking at him expectantly. He sighed. "Well, what are you guys looking at?" he asked gruffly, "go and put us on defense level three. Have the rest of the fleet know what's going on, and have then stand down."

"Yes sir." the officers said. The sound of typing and mouse clicking soon filled the room. Jorda turned, walking across the bridge, and into his private office. There, he took off his officer's gloves, staring at his hands. They were glowing a bright shade of green again. Jorda gulped a little, and suddenly, green fire leapt out of his hands, charring the walls a little. Jorda waved his hands around, and soon enough, the fire had vanished.

Jorda was sure of it. He was becoming exponentially more aware of what his powers were, and how to control them. By now, he could summon fire at will, and turn them off as well. Something strange was happening...how would he explain this to anyone who caught him? Nobody had seen him with his powers on yet...but what if someone did? Then what would happen? Would he be executed? Court Martialed? Would nothing happen?

The doors to his private office opened, causing Jorda to jump, as an officer walked into the office. "Captain Jorda, sir, we have something you may want to see out here on the bridge," said the officer, "apparently, we're receiving signals from coordinates 67839 293881 482948."

Jorda paused, "Isn't that in open space?" he asked, "nobody can live all the way out there...dismiss it, it's probably some stupid glitch like the Cromwell incident. Also send a confirmation communication check to Admiral Minara. We don't want anything bad to happen to her on her little visit to the planet.

"Yes sir," said the officer. Before leaving the room, he turned around, "it smells a little like smoke in there by the way," he said, "you want me to send in a technical team to go check for any possible errors, or-"

"No its fine!" spluttered Jorda, "it's fine...it's just….um...the Bilateral Quantum Gearbox had just been set off below decks, so there was a small fire...no problem though, I've gotten mechanics on that problem a long time ago."

"Alright…" the officer took one last suspicious glance at the room, before exiting.

Jorda stared at his hands.

"Dangit...this is literally the worst timing for this to start acting up…"

Jorda exited his office, rubbing his back.


	153. A Dangerous Adversary

Josiah watched the computers anxiously, his brows scruffed up in concentration. He had been tracking the Gordian Fleet for a few hours by now without any significant movement. Currently, the entire planet was on lockdown, with all city garrisons having been deployed in case of combat, which Mavis strongly suspected would be happening in the next 24 hours. According to Josiah's sensors, the Gordian Remnant had sent a lone transport shuttle down to the planet, which had returned two hours later. He had already informed Mavis of this, and knew just as well as her that this probably wasn't a good thing.

Anyways, Mavis was too busy preparing the planet's ground forces for combat. Josiah's job was to simply track the Gordian Fleet, and report anything that happened. For now, the fleet appeared to be maintaining a constant orbit around Koribaun. It was then when Josiah noticed something else. A tiny signal, so small, he wouldn't have even seen it if his eyes weren't in the right place at that moment. Coming directly from dead space.

Josiah blinked. He quickly motioned his mouse over to the signal, clicking the "delete" button. Nothing survived out there in dead space. Nothing could survive in the area between galaxies. That was impossible. It was then when Josiah noticed that the Gordian Warships were moving, beginning to face itself towards their planet. Immediately, Josiah pressed a button on his control panel, opening the communications channel to Mavis, "Mavis," he said urgently, "The Gordians are approaching, you have to get ready."

"Yeah, I know," said Mavis on the other side. At the current moment, she was standing in front of the Capitol City, ordering soldiers to their positions. She already had a powerful anti-aircraft defense system built, and had just created a few dozen ground-to-space cannons within the city ramparts. Every city within the planet had already been warned of the imminent threat of the Gordian Empire and the Seekers, and were mobilizing their soldiers.

As Mavis watched the skies, the entire Gordian Fleet suddenly warped in on top of the atmosphere. Lucky for Mavis, her ground-to-space guns were already locked and loaded, and opened fire as soon as the warships came into view. The lead ship sustained heavy damage, with several other enemy escorts disappearing in the fireballs that the massive guns created. In front of them, Mavis saw several flashes of light, as dozens of Seekers also teleported into the area in front of her.

"OPEN FIRE!"

Laser and energy bolts began to fill the air, as the Seekers and the Clone Soldiers began to exchange fire. Above them, Mavis sensed the enemy hangar bay doors open, and saw dozens of fighters begin to swarm above them. They began to go straight at the Capitol City, many of them exploding as the anti-aircraft guns came to life.

But there were more worrying problems.

In front of Mavis, in a swirl of light, several massive dragons appeared out of nowhere, with Seekers riding on their backs. The dragons roared, blasting fire through the Clone ranks, incinerating many of them. The dragons were large, each one about thirty meters in length, and covered head to toe in what appeared to be bulletproof scales.

It wasn't anything that Mavis couldn't handle. With a rush of energy, Mavis teleported to the first dragon, telekinetically throwing it against a second one. She was about to attack a third dragon, when an energy blade went right through her stomach, cleaving her clean in half. Or at least, it should've cut her in half. Her stomach regenerated so fast that Mavis didn't even feel the blade. She only sensed the mage.

Without hesitation, Mavis swung around, grabbing the mage by the face, and blasting him to dust. It was looking good at the current moment for her, but Mavis also knew that her soldiers wouldn't be able to hold out against the mages forever. The dragons were the most dangerous adversaries of the clones, each one easily cutting the soldiers down.

Johnny was doing alright as well, despite his wounded soldier. He had already downed several Seekers, and was in the process of fighting another one. Above her, Mavis saw several of her own warships warp into the battle over the planet, opening fire on the Gordian warships. It was a comforting sight, but not one which she could enjoy for very long, as a dragon soon focused his attention on her, spitting a massive stream of fire at her.

As Mavis jumped back, she heard a loud _thunk_ , and looked up right in time to see Josiah, clad in a huge mech suit, jump out of nowhere, and land on the ground in front of the Dragon. Reaching over, Josiah grabbed the Dragon's neck, and slammed it against the ground, choking it. It looked as if Josiah had it all under control, until a Seeker threw him off with telekinesis.

"Augh!" Josiah got back up, a missile pod opening up on one of his shoulder panels, and launching a missile at the Seeker who had just thrown him. The missile flew faster than a normal eye could see, colliding with the seeker, and incinerating him. "Mavis, look out!"

Mavis looked up, in time to see one of the Gordian Warships, under heavy fire, and sustaining extreme damage, finally buckle under the pressure. The warships slowly tore from formation, falling towards the ground. Mavis immediately raised her arms, shoving the warship out of its current course, and causing it instead to crash into the seeker army, that was by now in full attack.

As the warship crashed, Mavis noticed a few things. It was a large warship, larger than the average Gordian Warship. The second thing Mavis noticed was a chill that ran down her spine. It wasn't of danger, but of something more subtle. Kind of like the feeling people would get when they think they forgot something but actually didn't.

"MAVIS!"

Mavis turned around, right in time to see Gale walk out from the fighting. Behind him, a trail of dead soldiers followed. Gale held out his hands in a defensive position, "You have murdered dozens of my people!" he yelled, "you are not only a traitor to me, but also a traitor to the mystic arts! You will pay!"

With that, Gale flew at Mavis at full speed, which was about teleportation. Mavis easily dodged the attack, turning around, relaxed, when she was thrown back by Gale's telekinesis blast. Mavis was slammed into the ground, then thrown up into the air. Mavis growled. Maybe Gale was better than the average seeker at combat then…

Before Gale could hit Mavis, she had teleported, appearing right in front of him, and punching him so hard that it incinerated a nearby fighter. Gale, however, had the reaction time to form a shield before getting hit, preventing himself from dying, but the force of the punch was still enough to send him hurtling back to the ground.

Mavis flew straight down, and slammed into the area where Gale was, sending Gale flying back again. This time, Mavis could sense that it was a fatal attack. As Gale hit the ground, Mavis appeared behind him, stopping him. By now, Gale was already dying. His eyes were unfocused. His robes and cloak were tattered and torn up. Mavis almost felt sorry for him.

"You…" Gale gasped, "you, Mavis Dracula...you have no idea what type of history you have behind yourself...you are too powerful...too...powerful…here…"

Gale handed Mavis something. A key card. "This key card...it'll unlock the full contents of the holofile you stole…" Gale gasped, struggling for breath, "perhaps my approach was incorrect...but I still stand by my intentions. You are too powerful to be kept alive...you'll see why when you unlock the holofile."

Mavis didn't really know what to say. She gripped the key, silently bringing it into her dimensional storage, and making a mental note to check up on it later. "You know…" Mavis regretted saying this to a dying person, "you know nothing of what you call the mystic arts," she said, "all your...rules. Meditation. Training. None of it is required, as long as you have the right experience."

Gale sighed, "Maybe you're right…maybe…." Gale's eyes glazed over, and his head turned sideways. He was dead.

Mavis stood up. All around her, the battle raged. But it all seemed to go in slow motion. A dragon fought a heavy tank. An artillery shell creeped through the air, flying towards a group of Seekers, who were in the middle of launching lightning bolts at a machine gun nest.

What was she doing?

Mavis blinked, and everything sped up. The tank blew up, as the dragon tore it to shreds. The artillery shell collided, killing the Seekers, and the machine gun nest was spared from another wave of lightning strikes. On the other side of the battlefield, the doors to the fallen warship burst open, and a group of Gordian soldiers jumped out, along with a group of officers who had survived the crash.

But the news was beginning to get around. Many of the Seekers were already teleporting away, having seen the dead body of Gale lying on the ground. Within a few seconds, the majority of Seekers had returned to their planet, leaving the Gordians in an unfriendly terrain, with nothing but untrained officers and battered up soldiers to protect them.

Mavis walked forward, leading her clone soldiers forward, surrounding the fleeing Gordians. According to her extrasensory perception, Mavis was told that the group consisted of 43 soldiers, and 6 officers. They were all wounded. "Johnny, take a squad of soldiers and block them off from the north side," said Mavis, "I'm gonna see if we can peacefully settle this."

Johnny, who was floating a few feet above her, nodded, and flew off towards the northern side of the circle of soldiers who were now slowly closing in on the Gordian Survivors. Above them, the Gordian Warships were turning and retreating, as they realized that their ground forces were surrounded and had no way of escape.

Mavis held up her hands, ordering the soldiers not to fire, but to keep the Gordians in their sights. She walked forward, "You're surrounded, outnumbered, and outgunned." said Mavis, "surrender now, and we'll let you live. Failure to comply will result in death, no matter what bargain you make."

There was a silence, until finally, the soldiers and officers began to lay down their weapons. Mavis motioned to some of her men, who ran forward, putting the enemy soldiers in handcuffs. Mavis also went in, overseeing her men's work. As she did this, however, her extrasensory perception was also shooting signals down her spine. There was something important here...something that she needed.

Mavis locked eyes with one of the officers. It was only for a brief moment, but in that brief moment, Mavis's extrasensory perception had read the officer from head to toe. "You." Mavis pointed to the officer, "you're coming with me. Soldiers, carry on."

As the soldiers continued to file through the people they had just captured, Mavis walked over to the officer, who was now looking at Mavis with a very frightened look on his face. He was a 26 year old male, about five feet eleven inches in height. Mavis noted that the soldier didn't look frightened as much as he looked guilty. But guilty about what?

"Follow me," said Mavis, "and don't try to run, because if you do, you'll fail."

The officer followed Mavis, across the battlefield, and through the front gates of the city. Mavis walked through the streets, making a few turns, until finally, she reached the prison facility. Without talking, Mavis located an interrogation room, and walked in, and without warning, froze the officer telekinetically.

"What's your name." hissed Mavis, watching the officer suspiciously.

The officer gasped, as he couldn't move, but at least he could still talk. "My name is Jorda," he said, "What...what do you want."

"There's something interesting about you…" Mavis said slowly, "do you have anything that's unique to yourself? Perhaps you can fly...or you can lift objects without touching them? Anything like that happening to you?"

"No."

Mavis sensed the lie from a mile away. She sighed. "I know when people are lying to me, so you better spit it out before I make you."

To emphasize her point, Mavis opened her palm, and blasted part of the wall two inches from Jorda's left eye, causing Jorda to cry out with alarm.

"Fine! Fine! I can...I can conjure fire out of nowhere...I can create fire!" Jorda shouted, "I barely know how to control it though…"

Mavis leaned over, her eyes a dangerous shade of purple, "Show me your powers." she hissed.

Because what Mavis was scared of the most was of what was already dead. She recognized Jorda's facial structure as soon as she saw it. And the powers also matched. If Mavis was not mistaken, Jorda was somehow related to Fubuki.


	154. Confirmed Identity

"So tell me," said Mavis, leaning forward, "what's your profession?" Jorda looked at her with a terrified look on his face, "I'm an officer," he said, "I specialize in wartime tactics and communications.". Mavis slowly nodded as she heard this. So this guy had been blending in for a while by now...a few more days, and he would've been able to control his abilities.

"What's going on, anyways?" asked Jorda, "do you know what's happening to me? I didn't know what was happening, so I hid in the bathroom whenever my powers started to act up." Mavis smirked. She remembered when she was in the same situations, so many years ago. When she first realized that she could lift rocks, and was too scared to tell Dracula.

"I know what's happening," said Mavis slowly, pacing the interrogation room, "you have powers, obviously. But I have a feeling that you're something in addition to that...do you know who your parents are? Jorda looked very surprised at the question, "Yeah I do," he said, a little too quickly, "my mom and dad...they were supposed to have lived on that planet that the Seekers were on."

"Your parents are seekers?" asked Mavis, "that's impossible. Marriage is prohibited on that planet."

"But...I remember it!" said Jorda, "I remember the planet's surface! I remember waking up every day, in a cabin, and I remember my parents taking care of me!" Mavis sighed, "Jorda...the Seekers don't live in cabins. They live in the main temple. I don't think your parents were seekers...they were something else."

"What do you mean?" asked Jorda, leaning forward a little, "why are you so interested in my parents, anyways? Do you know them?" Mavis nodded slowly, "I think I could've _once_ known your parents...but I'm not sure. I can find out though."

"How?" asked Jorda. His eyes were hungry for knowledge, and Mavis recognized that look very quickly. "Like this." Mavis reached out, and touched Jorda on the forehead with her index finger. Instantly, Mavis's vision tunneled, flying through a whirlwind of colors and sounds. In one instant, Mavis saw all of Jorda's thoughts. His feelings on the Gordian Empire, his crush for a female officer who worked in the gunner crew, his fear for anyone finding out about his powers, and finally...his family.

The image was fuzzy, which was the first warning sign that this thought was a fake one. But the part of it that really gave it away was the fact that Fubuki was the mom. The father was a complete stranger, but fizzled in and out of vision. His sides were also blurry, as if someone had taken a photocopy of him over and over again.

"Jorda, you were never born." said Mavis, "you were conceived through magic. By Fubuki…"

Jorda stared at Mavis, "How do you know my mom?" he asked, "that's my mom's name...you couldn't have figured it out just by touching my forehead...how-"

"Tell me, Jorda." interrupted Mavis, "what's your dad's name?"

"Um…" a flash of guilt shot across Jorda's face, "I...I don't really remember. But he exists! I promise you of that! I came here looking for my parents...hoping that I would find them here."

"Jorda, your mother is dead." said Mavis, "I killed her."

There was a long, drawn-out silence, as Jorda stared at Mavis. Mavis didn't sense any anger, just fear and a slight edge of coldness in his voice. "You...you killed my mom?" he asked, "but...you only reached this solar system a few days ago! How did you-"

Listen," cut in Mavis, "you have to listen to me, Jorda. Your mother was once my student. She learned how to control her powers through my teachings. But she turned evil. I had to kill her. It was the only way." as Mavis was saying this, a pang of guilt and nostalgia shot through her, but she easily ignored it.

"You're...you're saying that Fubuki created me through magic?" asked Jorda, "I didn't know that that was possible! How are you so certain?"

"I just know." said Mavis, standing up, "my senses are far beyond any normal human senses, believe me on that. Your memories are only an illusion that Fubuki created for you, so that you could lead a half-normal life. If it wasn't for those illusions, you might've been killed a long time ago."

Jorda looked extraordinarily surprised at this information. "I see…" Jorda suddenly looked up at Mavis fearfully, "so what are you going to do to me?" he asked, fear etched into his voice, "you killed my mother, are you also going to kill me? Is this why you brought me here?"

"No," sighed Mavis, "calm down. Damn, you Gordian officers are always so jumpy. You guys gotta learn how to chill. Show me what you know of your powers tomorrow, maybe I can take you under my wing as a student, like you mom."

Jorda stared at Mavis, "You mean...you aren't going to kill me?"

"No." said Mavis, "but if you give me any reason to, I will."

* * *

"Interesting…" murmured Xora, "Mavis is actually reaching 1% strength."

"Psh," a few light years away from Xora, Nylee scoffed, "You mean that weakling? Don't worry about her. She's not even a threat to us yet."

"Yeah, true." said Xora, "but still, she's getting more and more powerful every day. Don't you think that we should just kill her a tiny bit to make sure that she won't be of a threat to us anymore?"

"No point," said Nylee, "I'm bored."

Nylee snapped her fingers, creating an entire galaxy. She then snapped her fingers again, and the black hole in the center of the galaxy exploded, blowing up the entire thing. She smiled a little, "It's so satisfying, destroying galaxies, you know?" she said.

"Yeah," Xora turned back to her interdimensional monitor, "Yeah, it really is."


	155. Fragile Student

"So tell me," said Mavis, leaning forward, "what's your profession?" Jorda looked at her with a terrified look on his face, "I'm an officer," he said, "I specialize in wartime tactics and communications.". Mavis slowly nodded as she heard this. So this guy had been blending in for a while by now...a few more days, and he would've been able to control his abilities.

"What's going on, anyways?" asked Jorda, "do you know what's happening to me? I didn't know what was happening, so I hid in the bathroom whenever my powers started to act up." Mavis smirked. She remembered when she was in the same situations, so many years ago. When she first realized that she could lift rocks, and was too scared to tell Dracula.

"I know what's happening," said Mavis slowly, pacing the interrogation room, "you have powers, obviously. But I have a feeling that you're something in addition to that...do you know who your parents are? Jorda looked very surprised at the question, "Yeah I do," he said, a little too quickly, "my mom and dad...they were supposed to have lived on that planet that the Seekers were on."

"Your parents are seekers?" asked Mavis, "that's impossible. Marriage is prohibited on that planet."

"But...I remember it!" said Jorda, "I remember the planet's surface! I remember waking up every day, in a cabin, and I remember my parents taking care of me!" Mavis sighed, "Jorda...the Seekers don't live in cabins. They live in the main temple. I don't think your parents were seekers...they were something else."

"What do you mean?" asked Jorda, leaning forward a little, "why are you so interested in my parents, anyways? Do you know them?" Mavis nodded slowly, "I think I could've _once_ known your parents...but I'm not sure. I can find out though."

"How?" asked Jorda. His eyes were hungry for knowledge, and Mavis recognized that look very quickly. "Like this." Mavis reached out, and touched Jorda on the forehead with her index finger. Instantly, Mavis's vision tunneled, flying through a whirlwind of colors and sounds. In one instant, Mavis saw all of Jorda's thoughts. His feelings on the Gordian Empire, his crush for a female officer who worked in the gunner crew, his fear for anyone finding out about his powers, and finally...his family.

The image was fuzzy, which was the first warning sign that this thought was a fake one. But the part of it that really gave it away was the fact that Fubuki was the mom. The father was a complete stranger, but fizzled in and out of vision. His sides were also blurry, as if someone had taken a photocopy of him over and over again.

"Jorda, you were never born." said Mavis, "you were conceived through magic. By Fubuki…"

Jorda stared at Mavis, "How do you know my mom?" he asked, "that's my mom's name...you couldn't have figured it out just by touching my forehead...how-"

"Tell me, Jorda." interrupted Mavis, "what's your dad's name?"

"Um…" a flash of guilt shot across Jorda's face, "I...I don't really remember. But he exists! I promise you of that! I came here looking for my parents...hoping that I would find them here."

"Jorda, your mother is dead." said Mavis, "I killed her."

There was a long, drawn-out silence, as Jorda stared at Mavis. Mavis didn't sense any anger, just fear and a slight edge of coldness in his voice. "You...you killed my mom?" he asked, "but...you only reached this solar system a few days ago! How did you-"

Listen," cut in Mavis, "you have to listen to me, Jorda. Your mother was once my student. She learned how to control her powers through my teachings. But she turned evil. I had to kill her. It was the only way." as Mavis was saying this, a pang of guilt and nostalgia shot through her, but she easily ignored it.

"You're...you're saying that Fubuki created me through magic?" asked Jorda, "I didn't know that that was possible! How are you so certain?"

"I just know." said Mavis, standing up, "my senses are far beyond any normal human senses, believe me on that. Your memories are only an illusion that Fubuki created for you, so that you could lead a half-normal life. If it wasn't for those illusions, you might've been killed a long time ago."

Jorda looked extraordinarily surprised at this information. "I see…" Jorda suddenly looked up at Mavis fearfully, "so what are you going to do to me?" he asked, fear etched into his voice, "you killed my mother, are you also going to kill me? Is this why you brought me here?"

"No," sighed Mavis, "calm down. Damn, you Gordian officers are always so jumpy. You guys gotta learn how to chill. Show me what you know of your powers tomorrow, maybe I can take you under my wing as a student, like you mom."

Jorda stared at Mavis, "You mean...you aren't going to kill me?"

"No." said Mavis, "but if you give me any reason to, I will."

* * *

"Interesting…" murmured Xora, "Mavis is actually reaching 1% strength."

"Psh," a few light years away from Xora, Nylee scoffed, "You mean that weakling? Don't worry about her. She's not even a threat to us yet."

"Yeah, true." said Xora, "but still, she's getting more and more powerful every day. Don't you think that we should just kill her a tiny bit to make sure that she won't be of a threat to us anymore?"

"No point," said Nylee, "I'm bored."

Nylee snapped her fingers, creating an entire galaxy. She then snapped her fingers again, and the black hole in the center of the galaxy exploded, blowing up the entire thing. She smiled a little, "It's so satisfying, destroying galaxies, you know?" she said.

"Yeah," Xora turned back to her interdimensional monitor, "Yeah, it really is."

Beneath her, several more solar systems swirled around. Xora and Nylee were both part of the Xylan species, a race of highly-condensed particles of dark energy. They operated on a large scale relative to the solar system, and were quite interested in Mavis.

"Mmm...you think she can survive the initiation for the Xylan?" asked Xora, leaning back a little, "she is awfully strong for a normal person. Why did she even exist in the first place? Who gave her all of that?"

"Must've been some sort of freak accident, like that case with...who was it? Adolf Hitler?"

"Yeah, but he was a mental nutcase...this girl is more of a physical nutcase. I wonder how she came to be like that. Sounds quite unnatural." Nylee groaned as she leaned back as well, "stop analyzing everything so much, sis! If she becomes a threat, we can kill her."

"Fine."

Xora and Nylee turned back to the room that they were standing in, both of them retreating back to their respective chambers. They would be sleeping a little less soundly tonight.

* * *

"So, do you know how to control your powers yet?" asked Mavis, standing a few dozen feet away from Jorda, "or are they only spontaneous?"

"I can kind of tell them when to turn on, but when they do, I have no control over how powerful the fire is." said Jorda. He still looked very shaky. At the current moment, they were standing on a flat sand dune in front of the Capital. Mavis nodded slowly, "try getting your fire back." she said.

"Um...now?" Jorda looked uncertain, and looked at Mavis as he said that.

"Yes, now." replied Mavis impatiently, "and this time, try not to lose focus of the fire when it starts. That way, you might be able to control the fire without much difficulty."

"Okay…." Jorda closed his eyes, clearly concentrating on something. There was a green spark that came out of his hands, and suddenly Jorda's hands had become two balls of fire. Immediately, Mavis noticed Jorda panic a little, and the fire died down a tiny bit.

"Don't lose focus!" yelled Mavis, "concentrate, dangit!"

Jorda slowed his breathing. He held his hand out, the inferno still uncontrolled within his palms, and opened his hand slowly, allowing some fire to seep out. This time, it was definitely more controlled. The fire didn't go everywhere.

But it didn't last for too long. After about ten seconds, Jorda lost focus, and the fire went out. He collapsed back onto the ground, panting. Mavis noticed that he looked very tired.

"You've got your mom's gift." said Mavis, "you'll be able to learn it eventually, but for now…" she telekinetically forced Jorda back to his feet, "again."

For the next several hours, Jorda trained under the scrupulous supervision of Mavis. By the fifth hour, Jorda was able to completely hold his fire in control for a solid twenty minutes.

"Good job," said Mavis, patting Jorda on the shoulder, "you're a fast learner."

Jorda, who by now wasn't scared of Mavis anymore, nodded slowly. "Thanks." he muttered, wiping some sweat off of his forehead, "but when will I be able to use it in combat?"

"When you're ready, which you aren't right now." Mavis jumped, as she looked behind her, coming face to face with Johnny, who was standing in the shadows, grinning. "What is this?" he asked, "Mavis, you're really taking another student in? Even after what happened last time?"

"He's Fubuki's son." said Mavis.

"Yeah, you told me that earlier, but why're you training him?" Johnny's eyes became a little sharper, "we don't want another betrayal."

Mavis looked at the ground, "Fubuki died. We have an obligation to make sure that if she had a child, which she did, that that child would be able to use their powers just as well as Fubuki did."

Johnny sighed, leaning back again a tree, "Fine." he grumbled, "anyways, I'm Johnny. Nice to meet you, Jorda."

Jorda's mouth fell open. "You...you're Johnny?" he asked, " _the_ Johnny? The one the Gordian Remnant's been trying to kill for so long?"

"Yeah, that's me." Johnny walked over, looking at Jorda carefully, "but you're going to have to know a few things when you're with us. First thing. You're going to be in dangerous situations alot of the time. Life threatening situations. Most of which will be against your favor. What Mavis is trying to do right now is teach you how to survive in an enviornment where everyone wants you dead. And if you can't handle it, then you better drop out on your own accord right now. Got it?"

"Yeah...yeah, I got it." Jorda stepped back involuntarily. Johnny nodded, and turned around, flying back towards the Capital.

There was a moment of silence.

"You know, he's right." said Mavis, walking up to Jorda from behind him, "people always want victory. They always want to win. But in the end, it's all a game of survival. You're going to have to learn how to live when living seems impossible. It's a mental game more than it is a physical one."

Jorda nodded.

"I know," he murmured, "I know now, at least."


	156. A New Threat

"Again."

Jorda flew through the air, slamming into a wall on the other side of the field. In front of him, Mavis waved her hands again, causing Jorda to get yanked back into the air, and get slammed against the sandy ground.

"You're too slow to summon your powers," said Mavis, "don't focus on scrunching up your face - focus on _concentrating_. Your reaction time will be of pivotal importance during battle. Don't let it take the better of you!" with that, she unleashed another telekinetic wave at Jorda.

Bracing once again, Jorda lobbed himself into the air with a burst of green fire, flying over the telekinetic wave, right in time to get slammed back onto the ground with a second telekinetic shove.

Scrambling back up, Jorda launched a dozen fiery attacks at Mavis, each one flying at her with supersonic speeds. By now, Jorda had learned how to fire off attacks in quick sequential order. The only problem was summoning them in time.

"That's more like it!" Mavis let the attacks hit her, engulfing herself entirely in flame, but when the fire died out, she was completely unscratched.

Jorda stood there, panting. "Is that all?" he asked, "or do we have to-"

Before he could even finish the sentence, Mavis had teleported behind him and slammed him against the ground. Without giving him any comfort room, she went on to throw him into the air, and blasted him backwards using her telekinesis.

"The battle is never over." growled Mavis, "never let your guard down, no matter what!"

She teleported right in front of Jorda, grabbing his arm and twisting it back, rolling him over her back and pinning him to the ground in an effective shoulder lock.

"If this is how you perform during battle, then you won't stand a chance!" she yelled, "come on, fight back!"

Jorda struggled under Mavis's iron grip. There was suddenly a green glow, and fire burst out from his body, engulfing everything within a ten foot radius of Jorda. Mavis grinned. Maybe he was getting somewhere. Letting go to make Jorda feel as if she was backing off, Mavis teleported a few feet away to let him regain his ground.

But before he could regain composure, Mavis was drilling him yet again.

"Augh!" Jorda collapsed onto the ground, crying with pain. Mavis had just broken his ribs on purpose. She knew that Jorda would be fine, as she had healing properties to help him if needed.

"Get used to the pain," said Mavis coldly, "get up!"

Jorda groaned, rolling around on the ground.

"If you're going to give up after a broken rib, then you have alot to work on," said Mavis, "I said, _get up_."

She raised her hands, and telekinetically forced Jorda into a standing position, causing him to scream with pain from his broken ribs, that were now being forced into an awkward positioning from Mavis's telekinesis.

"Listen," Mavis hissed at Jorda, her face only a few inches away, "I've experienced pain beyond what you're feeling right now. What you're feeling right now is _nothing_. Keep fighting. Keep fighting as if your life depended on it! FIGHT!"

Jorda screamed, except this time, there was something different in his voice. Anger. Fury. Mavis backed up a tiny bit right as his anger exploded on top of her.

Purple fire blasted in all directions, melting the sand into a halo of glass. It was a pretty weak blast, but from Mavis's vantage point, Jorda was certainly making progress.

It was enough to make Jorda collapse right afterwards, at least. Mavis felt his consciousness dampen a little, and in an instant teleported right next to him, turning him over. Her hands immediately went over to his rib cage, where she began to mend his broken bones. It then went up to his shoulders, where she realigned a fractured shoulder.

Mavis placed his index finger on Jorda's forehead. With a soft, but commanding voice, she murmured, "Wake."

Jorda shot up immediately, gasping. He immediately winced, anticipating the pain that was about to hit him from what he thought were his broken bones, but quickly realized that no pain was coming.

"What the…" Jorda looked at him, "I thought that I had a broken-"

"Healed it." Mavis stood up, "but you're going to have to have more self-control than that. That's hopefully not the first time you've broken a bone. And it certainly won't be the last, so get used to it."

The sad thing was that this _was_ the first time Jorda had actually broken a bone. Not saying much, he got up, brushing off sand from his shirt, "Let's go again." he said.

Mavis glanced at him, "You sure?" she asked, "it's five o' clock right now, you might want to get some dinner before I destroy you again."

"I mean…" Jorda turned around, "I can go without food for a little longer," he muttered, "come on, wasn't it you who was telling me only a few seconds ago that the battle was never over?"

To be honest, the only reason Mavis wanted to stop practicing was because she had gone for a few weeks by now without any food, and wanted to see if her taste buds still worked. But if Jorda _wanted_ to practice, then…

Mavis shrugged, "Fine." she said.

* * *

In the Capital, Johnny was sitting down with Josiah, the two of them pondering over some star maps and space routes that led through nebulas. Josiah in particular was still fascinated by the fact that Mavis had thrown their planet into orbit, and wanted to see if Mavis could go even farther with her strength, while Johnny was seemingly bored. At the current moment, Josiah was informing Johnny of an extragalactical signal he had taken.

"Oh, please." Johnny groaned, as he leaned back, "no more conspiracy theories."

"But it makes so much sense!" Josiah's eyes had that dangerous gleen to it, that mad refraction that always happened whenever he got excited, "there's something out there - and they're extraordinarily advanced."

"And why should we believe you?" asked Johnny, "you're smart, but maybe you're overreacting this time. I mean, last time you thought you had something-"

"That doesn't count." grumbled Josiah bluntly, "I just wanted to see if an experiment would work. This time, I'm certain that I'm onto something. 60,000 Yottahertz! Nothing in the galaxy could produce something like that!"

"Yeah, I get it," said Johnny patiently, "but don't you think that maybe you should-"

"My calculations are definitely correct!" snapped back Josiah, "come on, what if its something life threatening? Only an extraordinarily advanced civilization could produce something of that caliber!"

Johnny grumbled something under his breath, "I'll check in with Mavis then," he finally said, "there's no point in arguing with you, anyways. She'll be able to tell if there's actually something out there."

"Hmph." Josiah slumped back down, "why do you guys never trust science?" he asked, "whenever I come up with something that's scientifically accurate, you guys just end up either rejecting it, or ignoring it. And you guys are usually correct as well. How do you-"

"If there's one thing I've learned from my time on the run," murmured Johnny, "it's that science can never be trusted. There's always something out there that you don't know about. There are always hidden factors that'll screw you over."

Johnny paused for a moment, taking some time to sip some coffee. The only thing was, once he finished drinking his coffee, he noticed something.

He was becoming transparent.

"What the-"

Johnny scrambled out of his seat, staring at his own body, which was slowly flickering away. Josiah, also noticing this, got up as well, running over, "Woah, Johnny, something's happening-"

"Yeah, I can tell!" Johnny began to slightly panic, electricity crackling out of the tips of his fingers, "what the hell is going on…"

His image flickered a tiny bit, vanishing for a moment, then coming back to life.

Then he was gone.


	157. Trial of Death

"What happened?" asked Mavis, rushing into the main palace of the capital city, "where is Johnny? Jorda, what happened?"

Josiah was still sputtering, as he tried to explain what had happened to Johnny, "He was talking to me about some stuff, and then he began to go transparent, and then he vanished! I have no idea how it could've happened! I've scanned the entire area using biosensors, and I've deducted that the only possible explanation for his disappearance is teleportation from an external source!"

"Teleportation?" Mavis stared at Jorda for a moment, before remembering what she was doing there, "whatever. Bring me up to the room where he vanished." she then turned to her commanding officers who were standing behind her, as well as Jorda, "I want guards posted at every corner, every street, every entrance to every building," she growled viciously, " _Now!_ "

The officers immediately nodded, heading out to inform the soldiers. Mavis turned back to Josiah, "Come on, let's go." she said shortly, "I want to see the room in which this happened."

"Follow me." Josiah led Mavis up the stairs, and walked through three sets of hallways, which were all lined with sofas and antique paintings. They soon had made their way into the main office. A table was in the middle, with charts and star maps sprawled out on top of it. Protractors, rulers, and pencils also covered the wood surface.

"Johnny was sitting here," Josiah pointed to the seat that was at the head of the table, "before he started to vanish. Would you like me to get my scanners, and let you see what had-"

"That won't be necessary," Mavis's voice was deadly calm as she spoke, "Josiah, leave the room. Wait for me downstairs. I need to do something."

"But-" Josiah stopped himself before he could instinctively object to Mavis's orders, "okay, sure." he muttered in replacement, slowly slinking away to the door, and vanishing behind them, "make sure to tell me if you need anything."

Mavis didn't look back. As Josiah shut the door behind her, she began to focus on her feelings. Something was horribly wrong. Something was incredibly different about what she was doing in this case. Johnny often went missing. Hell, he even died once and Mavis had to revive him. But now, something was different.

She was...calm? Not angry? Not even _sad_? Worried? Distraught? That the only person she truly trusted was now gone? No, that wasn't it. She cared about Johnny. But this _calmness_ was something else.

Mavis sighed, breathing in deeply. She waved her hands, shutting the windows, drawing the curtains, and shutting off all electronic devices in the room. She could feel every speck of dust, every inch of the carpet, every soft sound. She closed her eyes, slowly allowing herself to fall deeper into her extrasensory perception.

She could see every person in the city simultaneously. She could read clearly everything that was around them. Every corner, every hallway, every bird's nest, rat's den, and dog's pen. He could feel the cold wind of the outside, and the searing blaze of the furnaces in the ironworks. The world was out there, at her fingertips. Just waiting to be read, like a book.

Mavis's vision instantly tunneled, flying through the atmosphere, out of the planet. She wasn't surprised. She was calm. Perfectly calm. But there was something hidden underneath that blanket of benign calm that was starting to boil up.

A deep hatred for what she knew had taken her only love away from her. She could feel it. It was willing her to go beyond what she was used to. Her vision flew from the planet, to the galaxy. Then from the galaxy, to the universe, which was surrounded by the Guardian's world. Then going even further, flying through a world of dense colors, and vibrant sounds. An infinite number of infinity universes of infinite galaxies of infinite planets. Each and every one, Mavis saw and understood perfectly.

But there was something beyond this. Something that was so infinitely small, and yet so infinitely big, that it shouldn't be possible. Mavis's hatred began to grow. Her anger began to show its signs.

Her vision flew past the bounds of the infinite omniverse, flying far over it, and focusing on one, individual thing. One, individual person. One, individual figure.

It was Johnny, perfectly suspended in a ball of light. Around him, figures moved. Mavis couldn't clearly make out the figures, as they seemed to be made up of non-baryonic matter, but she _could_ see them with her extrasensory perception. She could see them discussing, talking, not even _caring_ about what they had done.

Mavis hated them. She hated every one of them.

They had stolen her only friend. Her only companion. The only person she truly trusted in this world. And they were doing it for the sake of some sort of experiment.

They would pay.

Mavis opened her eyes, blinking a little. She looked around, at the room she was standing in. At the polished oak table, covered with star maps and writing utensils. At the windows, which were now sealed and had the curtains drawn over them.

Mavis didn't say anything, as she considered what she had just seen. The anger that was brewing inside of her began to slowly seep out. It wasn't an outburst of anger - this was much slower, and much worse. The reality of what was happening began to dawn on her.

Johnny was gone. _Again_.

"Josiah." called Mavis, "get over here. Now."

There was barely any silence, as the door swung open immediately. Mavis could tell that he had been standing behind the door the entire time, definitely listening in on what was going on. Josiah walked in, looking enthusiastically at Mavis.

"Did you find anything?" asked Josiah, "or is it still unknown?"

"I know where Johnny is," said Mavis, her eyes still having the bright blue afterglow that it always left whenever she went through extrasensory perception. There was a slight pause, as Jorda stared at Mavis, "Well...shouldn't we be looking for him, then?" asked Jorda, "where is he? Our fleet is ready for deployment at a minute's notice."

"Josiah, I need you to do me a favor." said Mavis, turning around to face him abruptly, "I need you to run this planet for now."

Josiah didn't answer for a moment, as the true realization of what Mavis had just said sank in. "Um...wha-what?" Josiah stammered, "Me? Lead this planet? Nobody is going to listen to me! I can't lead, I'm a scientist! And what're you going to do about-"

"Getting Johnny back is something that I have to do alone," said Mavis calmly, "I know how to get him back. It's going to require an incredible amount of energy, and an incredible amount of power, and I think that I can handle it. I need you to run this planet."

Josiah stared. "Out of all people…" he said slowly, "I...I guess I have to then. When do I start? Or are you going to announce it to the public?"

"I'll be telling everyone that I'm leaving you in charge," said Mavis, "they'll listen to you after that. Don't do anything drastic. Protect the planet, maintain its self-sufficiency, and if anyone attacks, I'm trusting you in the defense of its entirety. Got it?"

"Um...to be honest, no. But since this seems to be something that's not in my power to affect, I'll have to go with it," said Josiah shakily, "yeah, I'll take the job. When do you expect to be back, though? How long will bringing Johnny back take?"

"It'll take a while," murmured Mavis, "at least a month, I'm guessing. And that's only if what I'm thinking of goes according to plan, which it probably won't."

"Okay." Josiah didn't make any comments, and didn't ask any questions, something that surprised Mavis. She nodded, and walked past Josiah, "I'll go and inform the masses of what's going to happen," she said, "you just have to maintain a professional outlook, and everything should be fine."

"Okay," murmured Jorda yet again, still standing, staring at the wall in front of him as if in a trance, "I still can't believe that I'm going to be leading an entire planet…"

Mavis left Jorda in the office room, heading downstairs to the main chamber. The main chamber was completely empty, with not a single person in sight. But that only made it easier for Mavis to concentrate, and come up with something feasible to say to the public.

"Attention, citizens of the planet." said Mavis. Except this time, her voice was magnified, and echoed throughout the entire place. The entire _planet_. Every person could hear her voice now. Everybody could hear what she was about to say.

"I'm Mavis Dracula, the sovereign ruler of this planet. Many of you know me to be your leader because of my aid in driving out the menaces that have threatened this land. Others know me as an oppressor that conquered their cities and towns. Either way, I come today with a solemn announcement."

Mavis paused, as she formulated her next sentence, "I am going to be leaving the planet for a short duration of time. Do not worry. I will return to this place, and if something brings this planet into peril, similar to the last few invasions that it has suffered, I will surely return." that last statement was a lie, to be honest, but Mavis had to say something to quell public fear of an attack. She knew that she was a symbol of hope and protection for the millions of people who lived on this barren rock.

"Because of this, I am leaving Jorda in charge of the government. He will be taking care of the planet, making sure that it does not fall into the wrong influences, and will maintain the prosperity that I have brought thus far. All of my commanding officers, generals, admirals, and soldiers will report directly to him. An order from him is going to act as an order directly from me. Jorda, you will train in the palace guard under the instruction of my most elite melee fighters. Peace will be maintained within this planet, and law and order will be instilled with the equal vigor in which I have instilled it previously. Thank you."

Mavis cut the telekinetic magnification of her voice, shutting it off quickly.

She didn't have much time.

Quickly walking over to the entrance of the main palace, Mavis exited into her private garden. She slowly began to float above the myriad of trees, flowers, and blossoms that spread out beneath her. Below her, Mavis could feel the eyes of a little more than a dozen citizens who had taken notice of her, and were now stopping to watch. A few of them saluted in her direction. It was an optimistic salute.

Mavis turned away. Her people did not know what sort of danger she was walking into right now. They thought that she was their hero, going off on another quest to spuench another pocket of evil in an infinity benign universe. But this time, Mavis was walking into a place where she did not have a guarantee of returning. Her people thought she would win. She knew that she would be lucky if she survived.

They didn't understand. They didn't empathize. They couldn't empathize.

Mavis blasted off, flying straight through the atmosphere, and into space. She had saved Johnny once before from certain death, and she would do it again. She would not think of repercussions or failure. And this time, it wasn't desperation or depression that guided her actions. It was an intrinsic need. A subtle, innate feeling within her that guided what she did.

She required Johnny to live. That was just how she operated at this point. Johnny had been there from the beginning. He had seen Dracula die with her. He had been there on Earth, and had witnessed kings rise and fall. He had gone to the grave for her, in a very literal sense. If Johnny died, then…

Mavis shook her head, as she zipped out of the solar system. She would bring Johnny back this time. And if she didn't, it would be the last thing she attempted to do.

 **Hey guys - bubbly here. Sorry for not updating so often (even though this story has only two followers). I've been busy with schoolwork. But hopefully my schedule can pick up again.**


	158. Someone Stronger than Me

Mavis flew past the next galactic supercluster, still accelerating at several times the speed of light squared. The area around her was a colorful blur, but that didn't hinder her extrasensory perception. She could still see almost perfectly through the whirl and streaks of light that surrounded her. It's been only about two seconds since she had blasted off her planet, and she was already beginning to feel surprise at the efficiency of her powers. The fact that she wasn't getting tired was something that she really never got used to.

Eventually, Mavis got to the point where she went into teleportation, whizzing across the universe at an instantaneous speed. Her senses guided her direction, and she knew exactly where she needed to go. The only problem was getting past the things that stood between her and where she needed to go. She wasn't certain of those things, but she knew that they were there.

* * *

Xora smirked, "So she's coming for us?" she asked, not surprised whatsoever, "this is certainly going to be useful for our next experiments. Do not blast her to pieces yet. That's for later. Destroy her home planet, though. And everyone on it. That should emotionally force her to come for us even more."

"Hmph...we should keep the planet for now, so she isn't groveling once she gets here," muttered Nylee, "she's already _quite_ motivated, if you can't tell. I think it's only a matter of time before we see her crack underneath our pressure. I say we capture her, and bring her here directly. Allowing her to come here herself might be a little too much of a hassle than what I want."

"Very well," said Xora, "I will teleport her here immediately. Should we immobilize her as soon as she comes here, or should we let her put up a fight first? I mean, I'm sure that it's all going to be the same as what we've previously seen. The emotional distraught, and the grief, and all that whatever-y stuff."

"Yeah, we'll immobilize her as soon as she gets here," said Nylee, "Xora, go and make sure the rest of the Yurang-Vong understand what the plan of action is going to be. Remember, we want to keep her alive. A dead specimen is of no use for either of us."

"Okay, fine." Xora turned, opening up an interdimensional rift, "I'll be back in a few minutes."

* * *

"Ugh!"

Mavis tumbled onto the ground, smoke coming out of her shirt. Her eyes glowed purple with warning, as she sensed something lunge towards her. Before she knew it, she was frozen, unable to move. Her breathing constricted, causing her to gasp out for air. What was happening? She was just in space. How did she end up here?

"Careful!" snapped a voice in front of her, "we don't want her dead _yet_ , we only want her immobilized so she won't fight back."

"Fine…"

The constriction on her chest and lungs lightened, and Mavis was able to breathe at last. That was...painful. But either way, it didn't change one very unfortunate fact. The fact that there was something dangerous in the room with her. Whatever it was, Mavis couldn't see it, as it appeared invisible, but at the same time, she could sense it moving around.

And where was she, even? This wasn't a room...all around her was a view of the stars, except it seemed to oscillate around her, as if being shown through a fisheye. Mavis growled. "What type of creature are you?" she hissed, "are you the thing that Josiah found?"

"Oh, how rude," commented the voice, "you could at least give us a warm welcome, you know. We have been waiting a _long_ time just to see a specimen like you! Oh, and who is this...Josiah?"

"He's a friend of hers," muttered another voice, which was also in front of Mavis, "a human. Weak. Like the rest of them. This one is not weak, but compared to us…"

"Oh, yes." the first voice appeared to turn back to Mavis, "Listen up here, Mavis. We're going to have to immobilize you now, because we don't want you to struggle as we perform experiments that may or may not be extremely painful and-"

Mavis dashed straight at the voice, drawing palm back to ready herself for a telekinetic shove, before suddenly, she was yanked straight out of the air, and slammed to the ground like a rag doll. "Now," said the first voice a little more firmly, "since we've finally informed you of who here is in control, let us continue. Nylee, would you like to do the honors?"

"Of course."

Mavis struggled, but it was no use. Her arms had snapped to her sides, and her mouth was unable to move. This was far stronger than anything she had ever encountered before. She was, for the very first time in her life, completely and utterly helpless.

"So, for the first test…" there was a pause, as Nylee, wherever she was, appeared to read off of something, "try and kill Nylee…okay. That should be fun, actually. Here you go, try to kill me then!"

Mavis felt the constraints on her body go away, and she was suddenly able to move again. She slowly got back up, wincing from the pain of the pressure of Nylee's grasp. "I…" Mavis backed up a tiny bit, "What _are_ you?"

"Nothing of your concern, Mavis." Mavis sensed Nylee move forward in the room, "now, _attack me_."

As soon as the words came out of Nylee's mouth, Mavis had jumped into action. Her slow standing, and her words, were simply ploys to make Nylee lower her guard. But it still wasn't enough. Mavis's attack missed, and she ended up hitting the ground, punching with a force so large that a supernova blasted outwards.

"Oh, she's good, comparably!" Nylee seemed delighted at Mavis's attacks, "let's see if you can go on, then. Take _this_!"

A force suddenly yanked Mavis into the air, causing her to fly up, then slamming her down against the ground. Every atom in Mavis's body slowly began to dematerialize as well, simply vanishing into thin air. Mavis quickly sensed this.

With only half of her body remaining, Mavis slowly stood up, shaking a little. Her regeneration quadrupled in that moment, countering the effects of the dematerialization at the expense of her own strength. "This is a day to remember!" declared Nylee, now exuberant with joy, "Mavis, you are indeed worth it all!"

Mavis grit her teeth. "Well then what do you think of _this_?" she waved her hands, and a star was forged right on top of the location in which Nylee was standing. But in only a few milliseconds, Nylee had absorbed the entire sun, and had reciprocated it into a column of flame, which she launched straight at Mavis. This was by far the weakest attack thrown at her, one that Mavis had no trouble dealing with.

"Impressive…" Nylee's voice had taken a deadly turn, and Mavis knew immediately that she was in for a rough fight, "even facing your certain defeat, you still fight. Very admirable, Mavis Dracula!"

Even though Mavis couldn't see Nylee, she sensed the being teleport right in front of her, and immediately afterwards something had slashed through her chest. In only a couple of seconds, she was fighting for her life, dodging and weaving through Nylee's attacks. She sustained many hits, getting cut on the neck a couple dozen times, on the back, on the chest, in the eyes, and even had her head almost cut off, but her regeneration eventually took care of it all.

" _DIE_."

Nylee clapped her hands together, and immediately, Mavis burst into a ball of energy, and exploded outwards. There was nothing left of the vampire. Nothing except a single atom…

A single atom was all Mavis needed.

With a loud hissing noise, Mavis reemerged from the nothingness, clothing and all. She blasted forward, grabbing Nylee around the neck, and driving her into the ground. This was met with her being yanked out of the air once again, and having half her body ripped apart, something that her regeneration handled splendidly.

But at this point, the battle was already lost. Mavis could _survive,_ sure. But survival and victory were two different things. Victory was not going to happen in this case. And Mavis had just realized this.

"How does it feel, Mavis, to be in a situation where you aren't the most powerful one in the room?" asked Nylee mockingly, "how does it feel? TELL ME!"

This time, Mavis took the full force of Nylee's attack without even trying to defend. She flew across the room, and slammed into the ground, creating a massive explosion and sending supernovas flying everywhere.

"Ugh…"

Mavis tried to get up, but she simply didn't have the strength for it. Nylee flew at her once again, this time slamming Mavis's defeated body again and again with repeated attacks, battering her to an extent in which her powers simply began to fail…

* * *

Jorda sat in the courtyard of the capital city, staring out at the scene in front of him. Peaceful streets, with people meandering around in them. Clone guards marched in the clone training facility, going through their usual exercises. A bird flew in the distance, circling around the clock tower, which at the current moment, read "12:30 PM".

He was dressed in his training outfit, leaning against a pillar. His hands were still warm from his recent sparring session with Johnny, a sparring session that he got too cocky in, resulting in him getting his spinal cord electrocuted.

Across the courtyard, the large palace gates opened, and a man wearing a trench coat walked through, carrying his laptop in one hand, and a pencil in the other. He was an odd man. A very odd man. Odd enough to glance up, and stare weirdly at Jorda, before going back to his usual routine of walking around the palace courtyard.

That man was a sketchy guy. Jorda had known it ever since he laid eyes on him. He always walked around the palace courtyard, glancing here and there. Was he a spy? Probably not. But there was definitely something fishy about him, and the way he never spoke. Jorda had never even seen that guy interact with anyone else.

While thinking of these thoughts, Jorda accidently caused his hands to ignite once again, spitting green fire onto the sand underneath him. He cursed to himself, clenching his hands into fists, and extinguishing the fire. "Control yourself." he murmured.

Jorda had been receiving some strange mood swings recently. He felt extraordinarily calm and at home while around the courtyard, but whenever he went into the city, he immediately became suspicious, anger-prone, and kind of jerky. And even worse, people were definitely taking note of it. Even Johnny had told him recently to watch his actions outside the palace.

And what of Mavis? Was Jorda glad that Mavis was gone, so that she couldn't destroy him every single day during sparring? No. In fact, Jorda kind of missed the girl. She seemed like a good leader; young, charismatic, strong, and more than capable of handling herself. Johnny was a perfect substitute as well. He generally took things in a lighter tone than Mavis, but didn't hesitate to jump to action if needed.

Josiah had recently reported that the strange anomaly that he was observing in dead space was still happening, and even weirder, at a higher frequency. It was a strange thing, but in the end, Jorda wasn't sure if he was to trust the scientist's words. He was, after all, a very strange man in Jorda's eyes, who never understood how Josiah gained Mavis's trust in the first place. Mavis seemed so hard to please. Kind of like a very picky teacher who wouldn't write a letter of rec.

How peaceful these thoughts were, before the noon sky above Jorda literally exploded.


End file.
